


Out of Corona

by fandomgirl55566666



Series: The Sun Forever Shinning, The Moon Forever Bright [1]
Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: AU, F/M, I don't know what I'm doing, Kinda, Ruddiger is the best raccoon in the history of raccoons, The graphic depictions of violence tag is just there in case, but im gonna do it anyway, i don't know how to write, i sorta fixed the description, idk how to tag sorry, late updates brought to you by me, like i reaaaaaaally don't know how to write, moon varian, yay
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:15:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 22
Words: 22,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24977479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomgirl55566666/pseuds/fandomgirl55566666
Summary: After Rapunzel realizes the rocks are pointing her in a certain direction, she, Eugene, Cassandra, and Lance start to follow them, meeting a circus boy named Varian along the way.
Series: The Sun Forever Shinning, The Moon Forever Bright [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2056941
Comments: 105
Kudos: 179





	1. Next stop, anywhere

**Author's Note:**

> hi everyone!  
> so just to clear things up, Varian didn't grow up in Old Corona, and he never became a villian.
> 
> let us begin!

The caravan made its way down the road, bringing the passengers inside closer to their destination. Eugene and Cassandra had been fighting for about an hour now, as Rapunzel sat in a corner playing chess with Pascal. "I wouldn't have had to fix it, if you hadn't broken it!" "I broke it? You where the one who..." "Guys, can you please give it a rest? i'm trying to concentrate here." Rapunzel said as she moved her king forward. Pascal smiled smugly as he moved one of his pawns, putting her king in checkmate. Rapunzel smiled and scratched his chin. "Good job Pascal! I didn't even see that coming."

Cassandra glanced at her. "Sorry Raps. It's been a long day. We should stop soon." Eugene nodded. "For once I agree with the dragon lady. I'm so tired I can't even come up with good insults for her!" Cassandra rolled her eyes and climbed to the front to tell Maximus and Fidella to stop. Eugene sat down next to Rapunzel and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "How are you doing Sunshine? Having fun?" She looked at him, excitement in her eyes. "Oh Eugene! It's so amazing! I almost can't believe we're actually here!" Eugene chuckled. "Me either. I'm still surprised you got your father to agree." Rapunzel smiled at him happily. "Dad may be overprotective, but even he could tell that I needed to be out here."

"Hey Raps, Fitzherbert." Cassandra interrupted "I almost hate to point this out, but there's something you should see." Rapunzel and Eugene joined her at the front of the caravan, looking out at the night.  
Suddenly Rapunzel let out a high pitched squeal. "Cassandra, Eugene, we have to go!" Cassandra slapped her forehead and muttered, "And this is why I didn't want to say anything." "Oh come on Cassandra, it'll be fun! Please?" Rapunzel begged, giving Cassandra her best puppy eyes. "Rapunzel, no, I hate this stuff." Eugene grinned. "You know Cassandra, I'm inclined to agree with Rapunzel. Anything you don't like has to be fun." Cassandra shot him a look. "I am not going." Rapunzel looked at her, her eyes pleading. Cassandra sighed. "Ugh, fine. But not for long okay?" Rapunzel squealed again, hugging Cassandra tight. "Thank you Cass!"

Cassandra smiled and pulled Rapunzel off of her. "Like I said, not for long okay? I hate circuses." Cassandra said. Rapunzel laughed happily. "You won't regret this Cass, I promise! We are going to have the best circus trip ever!"  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Two hours later, Cassandra was sitting grumpily in her seat, muttering about broken promises while Rapunzel cheered for the acts and Eugene sat eating popcorn. "Wow Cassandra, you should try this! It's incredibly salty, just like you!" Eugene said happily. "Shut up Fitzherbert." Next to Eugene, Lance began to laugh. "Good one Eugene."

As it turned out, the circus hadn't just put up their tents in the middle of nowhere, they where practicing their newest act, but had been kind enough to offer a free act for the travelers. Rapunzel, of course, was thrilled and immediately accepted their invitation. Cassandra, however, was beginning to to wish she had never been born.

"Raps, can we please go back to the caravan now? Please?" Rapunzel shushed her. "Not yet Cassandra, there's one more act left." Cassandra groaned, impatient for her torture to end.

The lights where dimmed as the circus's leader stepped into the spotlight. "Now, ladies and gentlemen, prepare yourself for the show of a lifetime, a spectacular display of courage and bravery!" "Isn't that the same thing?" Lance whispered into her ear. "Yes. Yes it is." Cassandra answered, not bothering to be quiet. "Cassandra, shhhh!" Rapunzel whisper shouted. Cassandra sighed and resigned herself to at least another half hour of pain.

Suddenly, she heard Rapunzel let out a small gasp as she watched the stage. She looked at her best friend in concern, then followed her gaze to one of the acrobats on the stage, and studied him closely. Sure, he looked younger then most of the other performers, but he looked like he was doing just fine, maybe even better then anyone else. Cassandra didn't see anything about him that would make Rapunzel react like that, aside from the strange blue streak in his hair that he probably just dyed.

She looked back at Rapunzel, but the princess was just fine now. Cassandra would have to ask her what happened later. She turned her eyes back to the stage to see the performance, and, much her surprise, was thoroughly impressed. It was almost surreal watching Hairstripe (that's what she'd decided to call the kid with the blue streak) and the other performer doing flips, cartwheels, and other impressive tricks. She watched closely, looking for ways to incorporate their moves into her fighting technique, so that before she knew it it was all over.

Hairstripe and the other performer smiled at the audience and bowed. Cassandra noticed that when he looked at Rapunzel his eyes widened just a tiny bit, then he quickly composed himself and continued to smile.

The performers left the stage as the circus master got on it. "Ladies and gentlemen, I hope you enjoyed tonight's performance! With that, I bid you goodbye, and goodnight." A purple smoke filled the room, and when it cleared he was gone.

Cassandra stood up instantly with a relieved breath. "I'm going back to the caravan, you guys do what you want." Lance grinned. "Me and Eugene are gonna go get some snacks. Care to join us Princess?" Rapunzel shook her head. "I'm gonna go talk to some of the performers. I'll see you guys later."  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Rapunzel made her way through the many tents and trailers, looking for someone to talk to.

A voice behind her asked, "Can I help you your highness?" Rapunzel jumped, then laughed and turned around. "Oh no, I'm alright thank... wait, your highness?"  
The boy with the blue streak in his hair smiled and nodded. "Your hair. It's very long." "Oh that's how you knew." Rapunzel said laughing again. "And please, just Rapunzel." His eyes widened, "Umm, okay your... Rapunzel." She smiled brightly at him. "What's your name?" She asked. "Oh! I'm Varian." "Nice to meet you Varian!" "So, why are you out here, your, ah, Rapunzel?" He asked curiously. "Me and my friends are following the rocks. I'm not sure why, but I think they're taking me somewhere." Varian nodded. "Well this is coming from a woman who's hair has healing powers, so I'm not surprised."

Just then, a loud boom sounded across the circus, scaring Rapunzel and making Varian jump. "That's curfew, I gotta go. Bye!" And with that he ran off, somehow managing to trip over his own feet multiple times. Rapunzel watched him go, a smile on her face, then turned to go back to the caravan with a strange feeling that she should turn back.


	2. Four is now Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian is just another kid, but Rapunzel can't get the feeling he should be with them out of her head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi everyone! big shout out to DreamingInSilence for your idea! i will do my best to fulfill your wish.

As soon as the bell sounded, Varian rushed back to his trailer as fast as he could. If the circus master caught him out past curfew again, he'd have his alchemy stuff taken away for a week. 

Varian had always loved alchemy, he'd been doing it almost before he could speak, even before he'd joined the circus. Even before his father had died.

He reached his trailer, rushing in and slamming the door. He flipped onto his bed, reaching under it and pulling out his prize possession, a beautiful golden locket that he was pretty sure his mom used to own. He couldn't remember her of course, he could barely remember his dad.

He sat on his knees, looking out of his window at the night sky. He sighed, then whispered the same words he'd been whispering to himself for the 11 long years he'd been in the circus. "I don't belong here."  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Rapunzel woke up the next morning with a bright smile on her face. There was a great day ahead of her, she could feel it! Now if only she could convince Cass to stay at the circus a little longer... Rapunzel didn't know why, but she had to talk to Varian again. 

She stepped out of the caravan and started walking, already looking for him. She could hear the circus master's voice, obviously scolding someone, and she had a pretty good idea who it was. She turned the corner to see the circus master and a very sheepish looking Varian.

"This is the reason you can't get that act right! Varian, how can you expect to be at your best when you don't sleep!" Varian rubbed the back of his neck, a shy smile on his face. "Sorry sir. I lost track of time. It won't happen again." The circus master pinched his nose, annoyed. "That's what you said last time. And the time before that, and the time before that, and the time before that." Varian smiled again, less shy this time. "Point taken. Next time I'll think of something else to say." The circus master stormed away, kicking everything in his way.

"Hey Varian!" Rapunzel said, causing Varian to jump. "Oh hey Princess. Good morning." They both stood awkwardly for a minuet. Then Rapunzel asked, "Do you wanna meet my friends? I think you'll get along very well!" "Oh umm I really don't think.. oh we're going okay." Varian said, already being pushed toward the caravan.

"Eugene! Lance! Cass!" Rapunzel called, bursting through the door. Cassandra looked up, one eyebrow raised as she spotted Varian. "Rapunzel, I hope you're not getting to attached to this circus, we have to move on today." Eugene and Lance however, greeted Varian and went back to playing cards. "Everyone, this is Varian." Rapunzel announced happily. Varian smiled awkwardly and started to raise one hand in greeting, but Rapunzel made him sit down before he could. "So Varian tell us something about yourself!" She said brightly. "Uh, li-like what?" Varian asked. "Oh you know" Rapunzel said, waving her hand in the air. "what are your hobbies, your interests?" "Well um, I like alchemy." Varian said. "Alchemy huh?" said Eugene looking up from his cards. "What's that, some kind of magic?" Varian frowned. "Not magic, science." "And any potential interest I had in this conversation is dead. Eugene, is that an ace?" Lance said."Oh come on guys, this sounds interesting. I think I've actually read about alchemy before. What kind of projects have you worked on Varian?" Rapunzel asked, and with that the ball was rolling and Varian was talking excitedly about his past experiments.

About five minuets later Varian was talking about a machine he'd tried to invent which would give hot water to all the trailers. "And it worked too! Until it exploded, that is." Eugene stared at him, eyes wide. "Surely you jest?" he said. "Well I am from the circus, but that isn't my division." Varian said. "What." Said Lance, shocked. 

Varian looked up at the alarmed faces that surrounded him. "Oh no, don't worry, nothing's exploded sense. Well, maybe a few things but nothing been destroyed! And it hasn't happened in a while." The tense atmosphere relaxed, and everyone sat back.

"So Varian, how'd you end up in the circus anyway?" Lance asked. Eugene elbowed him in the ribs, earning a slight yelp from the man.

"I've been here for eleven years. I was orphaned when I was 3. The circus master found me and took me in. He taught me to do all sorts of tricks, like the ones you saw yesterday." Varian answered.

Rapunzel smiled. "Oh that's so sweet! Well, not the being orphaned part, but the other one!" Varian chuckled. "Yeah, yeah I guess it is." He looked down at his hands. 

Cassandra stood up. "Well hate to burst this happy bubble, but we've gotta go. We'll see you around kid." Varian started. "Oh yeah, of course. Bye Princess, bye everyone." he got up and walked out. Suddenly, Rapunzel was struck with an overwhelming sense of wrongness. "Wait." She said to Cassandra, who was already getting everything ready to leave. Cassandra groaned. "Rapunzel, I swear, if this is about you wanting to see the show again I'll.." "No that's not it." Rapunzel interrupted. "I've got this strange feeling that Varian needs to be with us on this journey. I don't know why, but I think he should come." 

Eugene lifted an eyebrow. "Rapunzel I like the kid, but are you sure he even wants to come?" "Well, I'll ask him. if he does, we'll take him. If he doesn't, he stays here." Rapunzel said, determination in her eyes. Eugene kissed her forehead. "I trust your judgement Blondie. We'll do what you think's best."

Rapunzel nodded and ran after Varian. When she caught up with him, she put her hand on his arm and said, "Varian, I don't know why but I think you're meant to follow the rocks with us. I'm obviously not gonna make you do anything, but please consider it." Varian looked at her, his eyes wide. "Princess, a-are you sure?" he asked. Rapunzel smiled and nodded. "I'm sure Varian. What do you say?" Varian looked at the tents and trailers that made up the circus. Then he looked at Rapunzel. "I'll come with you, Rapunzel."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> that's right folks, another chapter of my terrible trash.  
> again, huge shoutout to DreamingInSilence for Eugene's "Surely you jest!" to Lance's "what" line a few words later, all that was DreamingInSilence's idea. 
> 
> it is currently 1:35 am, so i'm gonna leave it here.
> 
> i hope you enjoyed this, and i'll see you all next chapter!


	3. Stranger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When a group of robbers attack them, Rapunzel and her friends meet a stranger named Adira, and learn just how usefull Varian can be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thats right everyone, guess who's back with another chapter of trash for your enjoyment. hi everyone 😜  
> so for some reason this chapter was really hard to get started on, i don't know why.
> 
> also, i will be keeping a few things from season 2, but most of it will be made up.
> 
> oh, and double also, this is my first real attempt at writing a fight scene, so any advice is appreciated!
> 
> ok, let us begin!

With everything and everyone packed up, the caravan made its way down the road, continuing down its path, bringing the riders ever closer to their destiny.

Varian sat on the roof, looking back towards the circus, thinking about the life he'd left behind. He'd never really made any friends at the circus, nobody there really cared about him, so he hadn't had anyone to say goodbye to. Well, except the circus master. But he hadn't really cared either. The only thing he ever saw in Varian was another performer. That's all he would ever see, so he wasn't too upset when Varian told him he was leaving. 

Varian sighed and put his head on his hand. He still didn't know why the princess had asked him to come, and he didn't think she knew herself. He was incredible grateful that the group had let him bring his alchemy stuff. It wasn't much, but it was enough for him to do some real damage if he wanted to. Not that he wanted to, of course, but he could tell that the woman Rapunzel had introduced as Cassandra didn't trust him very much. 

He took his mother's locket in the hand that didn't have his head on it, and stared at it.

He heard a noise behind him, and turned to see that the princess herself had climbed up on the roof to join him. He smiled "Oh hey Rapunzel." "Hi Varian! Oh, whats that?" she asked, pointing at his hand. "Oh this? I'm pretty sure it was my mother's." "Aww, that's so sweet! Can I see it?" he nodded, and placed the tiny golden locket in her hand. She opened it, squinting at the inscription inside. "Sarah and Quiren. Are those your parents?" he nodded again. "As far as I can tell. I remember my dad's name being Quiren, but I don't remember my mom. I think she died before he did, I don't really know."

Suddenly, the caravan jerked to a stop, and Varian heard Lance's voice come up from inside the caravan. "Uh, Princess? We may have a problem."  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cassandra faced the man, her sword drawn. She could tell that he was a thief, a fact made more obvious by the fact that he was part of a group.

She pointed her sword towards his face, ready to strike at a moments notice. So far, they'd been able to keep the thieves from getting inside the caravan, but it had only been a few seconds and their strength was already waning. They had also sent Lance to get Rapunzel, so it was only her, Eugene, and Pascal against what looked like thirteen enemies. Cassandra had managed to take down three so far, Eugene had gotten one, and Pascal was doing a surprisingly good job distracting the men. But they needed Rapunzel. And Lance. And even that Varian kid. 

Her wish was granted as Rapunzel came swinging down on her hair, bringing Lance with her. "Took you long enough!" Cassandra called, then backed up until she was next to Rapunzel and whispered, "Raps, where's Varian?" "He'll be right here! He said he needed to get something." Rapunzel whispered back. Cassandra nodded and turned back to the man. 

The door to the caravan burst open, and Varian came rushing through carrying some pink balls in his hands. He threw one at one of the men, releasing a bunch of smoke and something else Cassandra couldn't see. When the smoke cleared, she found herself mildly impressed. The man was covered from his feet to his neck in pink goo. She turned to congratulate Varian, only to find that he was no longer by her side. She looked around for him and saw him promptly jump off the caravan (which he somehow got back on top of in the space of five seconds), bouncing off one man's head and back flipping into another man's head, effectively knocking them out. 

Cassandra soon had to turn her attention to her own opponent, and she blocked and parried with him until he was close enough for her to hit him on the head with the handle of her sword. In the meantime, Rapunzel used her hair to tie up all of the thieves, and soon all thirteen men where firmly tied to a tree.

In the silence, Cassandra was sure she could hear something that sounded like applauds then a woman stepped out from behind their caravan. "You know, I thought i was gonna have to step in, but it turns out you handled yourself just fine." Cassandra drew her sword again, pointing it towards the woman. "Who are you?" she asked, her tone accusing. The woman smiled. "Oh I'm sorry. My name is Adira." Cassandra walked up to her until they were face to face. "And what do you want, Adira?" Adira continued to smile. "A word with the princess, is all. Alone, if you don't mind." Cassandra laughed. "Not gonna happen, weirdo." Adira looked surprised. "I'm not a weirdo. Different, okay, eccentric, absolutely, but I'm not a weirdo." She lightly pushed the tip of Cassandra's sword away, and strolled towards Rapunzel. "I'll take the thieves to the nearest village. I'll be back when we can talk more easily." she then proceeded to pick up all of the men at once and walk away.

Cassandra shook her head as she watched her grow smaller in the distance. "Weirdo." she muttered, then turned to go back inside with the others.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have discovered that Varian is really hard to write!
> 
> i hope you enjoyed this, and i'll see you all in the next chapter!


	4. Quirin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adira returns, and Varian learns a little more about his father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello again everyone! another chapter of trash coming right up!

It had been two days sense Adira had visited them, and Rapunzel had refused to move the caravan from that spot. Needless to say, Cassandra was way past impatient. She was currently in the girl's room trying to convince Rapunzel that if Adira wanted to talk, she would find them, but Rapunzel just shook her head. "If we move, how will she know where to find us?" Cassandra sighed. "She did it before, she can do it again. Come on Raps, we have to move on!" Rapunzel looked down at Pascal, who was resting on her shoulder, and he nodded. Rapunzel sighed. "Okay Cassandra. We'll move on." Cassandra smiled "Thanks Raps."

There was a sudden knock on the door, and Lance burst through grinning. "The beautiful white-haired woman is back!" Rapunzel bounced off the bed she'd been sitting on and said, "See Cassandra? I told you she'd be back soon!" she hurried through out of the room with with Cassandra chasing after her. "Rapunzel! I thought we where gonna leave!" "We where, but now we aren't!"

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They went outside to where Adira and Eugene where waiting. Rapunzel, being her usual kind self, greeted her with a warm smile and a friendly wave. "Hi Adira!" she said happily. "Hello Princess Rapunzel. Fishskin here was just amazing me with tales of the unknown." Eugene said "The unknown for all except one, and that is the great Eugene Fitz... wait did you say Fishskin?" Adira nodded. "I find it is easier to refer to people based on their personal characteristics, rather then learning their names. It saves time." "My skin is not fish skin! I use ten different products on it each day, it is not even slightly fish-like!" Eugene said, offended. Cassandra didn't even try to hide her laughter.

The caravan door opened and Varian's head popped out. Rapunzel waved at him. "Varian! Look who came to visit!" she said, putting her hand on Adira's shoulder. Adira looked down at her hand and said. "Okay, first thing's first. I don't like to be touched. So if you wouldn't mind..." "Oh okay!" Rapunzel said, withdrawing her arm. Adira smiled. "Thank you." 

By now Varian was all the way out the door. Rapunzel turned to him, and saw that he had his mother's locket around his neck. She opened her mouth to say something, but Adira beat her too it. "Where did you get that locket?" Varian looked at her, confused. "I've had it since I was three. I think it belonged to my mother. Why?" Adira looked at him, eyes wide. "Do you know your father?" Varian shook his head. "He died when I was three. I remember his name though. Quirin." Adira looked like she'd been hit in the face. "Quirin." she murmured sadly. "Did you know him?" Rapunzel asked. Adira nodded. "Its a long story. I cannot tell you all of it now, but I can tell you that Quirin was a brave warrior." Rapunzel clapped her hands, breaking the tense silence. "Well, who wants dinner?" Cassandra groaned. "Raps, we really need to get moving. No offence, but we don't have time to have a party." Rapunzel raised her hands in a surrendering gesture. "It's not a party Cassandra. I promise we'll keep it short." Adira nodded. "I can't stay long anyway short hair. I don't see the harm in a short meal." Judging by the look on her face, Cassandra did see the harm in it, but she didn't argue. "Fine." Adira sat down on the ground, waiting for the group to bring out the food. Rapunzel and Varian went to the storage compartment and took out some of the ham sandwiches that Varian had made earlier that day.

When she came back, she found Adira telling Eugene, Lance and Cassandra about how she had single-handedly defeated a pack of wolves, and you could practically see the stars in Lance's eyes. "You're amazing." he said in an awed tone. Adira smiled. "I know." she whispered. 

Eugene shook his head. "Come on Lance, anyone can do that! All you've gotta do is, um, well you have to..." Lance leaned toward Eugene, putting a hand to his ear. "Say what Eugene? I didn't quite catch that." Eugene turned bright red. "Just because nothing comes to mind doesn't mean I don't know how to do it. All I'm saying is that it was nothing special."

Rapunzel and Varian handed out the sandwiches, taking one for themselves as well and joining the circle. "I don't know Eugene, that sounds pretty impressive to me." Rapunzel said, taking a bite out of her sandwich. "Wow Varian, these are really good!" Varian smiled "Thanks Rapunzel. The secret is in the sauce. You can't just use one piled on top of another, you have to mix it." Rapunzel nodded, and turned back to the conversation.

A few minutes later, Adira stood up. "I have to leave now. If you need me, I'll know where to find you." she said, and walked off. 

Rapunzel watched her go, then said, "Well let's get the caravan ready everyone. "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have no idea what i just wrote 😂 i really don't. 
> 
> sorry this chapter was so short


	5. I don't know what to call this chapter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian and Rapunzel's connection begins to become clear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi everyone!  
> so, i decided to skip the trip to the spire, sorry guys! its still supposed to have happened pretty much the way it did in the show, so i didn't see any reason to include it
> 
> also, i don't know why, but the destruction of socky saddened me, so i decided to put it in there XD

It had been almost a month sense the whole Adira incident, and the caravan was making its way down a high narrow ledge, which Lance found quite worrying.

Rapunzel sat in the back of the caravan, Pascal on her shoulder and her sewing needle going in and out of socky, which she was fixing after she had accidentally squeezed it to hard at the spire (she had taken responsibility for fixing it, seeing as she was the one who broke it in the first place).

Rapunzel sighed contentedly, the rhythmic motion of the needle was familiar and comforting. Her head filled with thoughts, the same one's that had been coming to her for the past few weeks. Who was Adira? What did the Damanitus scroll say? And, most commonly, what was her connection with Varian? As soon as she had seen him on the stage, Rapunzel had known Varian was special, had known he needed to be with them. The question was, why? She sighed again, less happily this time.

She finished the last stitch on socky, handing it to Lance, who was sitting anxiously beside her. She patted his arm and smiled reassuringly and him. "Don't worry Lance, Cassandra's a very skilled driver. Plus, she has Eugene, they'll look out for each other." Lance shook his head "Forgive me if I don't find that reassuring Princess." Varian laughed from his corner of the room. "Yeah, those two can't get along for more then point zero five seconds. I measured it." he reached into his pocket, taking out a stop watch that he had built himself.

It was the sudden lurch that brought Rapunzel to her feet. She ran across the now uneven floor of the caravan, reaching the front and popping her head out of the window. "Eugene! Cassandra! What's going on?" Cassandra looked back and opened her mouth to answer, but Eugene beat her to it. "Well Sunshine, due to circumstances that are in no way my fault, we seem to be falling." Rapunzel's eyes went wide, and she jumped out the window to join them on the front seat. "Max! Fidella! Pull as hard as you can!" she commanded, but it was already too late. The caravan fell, breaking to harness between the horses and itself as it did so.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Varian woke up with the remainders of the caravan surrounding him. He coughed, his lungs trying to rid themselves of the dust. He immediately felt a sharp pain in his chest. He forced himself to stop coughing, and looked around careful not to move anything except his head. He spotted Lance nearby, and was relived to see the man standing, seemingly unharmed. 

He turned his head the other way, looking for the rest of the group, and saw Rapunzel, Pascal, Cassandra and Eugene emerging from what looked like a ball of glowing hair. Varian smiled and shook his head slightly. A shield of hair was the last thing he would have expected to save his friend's lives. 

He could hear Max calling down to them in horse language, so he knew he and Fidella must be alright.

Varian started to sit up, going slowly so that he didn't injure himself further. So far none of the others had seen him, and even though they were close, Varian doubted he'd be able to call out load enough for them to hear him. He couldn't breath deeply without pain, and he knew instinctively that if he moved, it would hurt. He managed to prop himself up on one of the black rocks and looked towards the group.

He could see Rapunzel's mouth moving and assumed she was talking. She looked slightly panicked, her hands playing with her seventy feet of hair. The group split up, seemingly looking for something. He followed them with his eyes, wondering what they where searching for. 

He saw Rapunzel glance around, and her eyes landed on him. She called out the the others, and ran toward him. She skidded to a stop in front of him, landing hard on her knees. "Varian! Varian, are you alright? We where looking for you!" 

Then it hit him.

_They had been looking for him._

Varian was shocked. In the circus, no one had cared enough to help him out, even if he'd sprained his wrist. Maybe that would be different from now on.

Varian covered up his surprise by answering Rapunzel's question. "I'm alright. I think my rib might be broken though." Rapunzel looked at him, concerned. "I'd say we should get you back to the caravan, but that isn't really an option." 

Her eyes landed on something behind him. "Um, Varian?" He turned, and saw what she had. 

The black rocks where glowing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so first of all, i'd like to say that i have no idea if those injury descriptions are realistic or not, i did do some research as as i was writing the chapter, but other then that i have basically no experience with injures. so sorry if i got anything wrong.
> 
> i hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and i'll see you all in the next one!


	6. Angry and Red

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cassandra stitches up Varian's injuries, Rapunzel wonders why the rocks were glowing, and some old friends come to visit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello everyone! again, i have no idea if the medical stuff in this chapter is anywhere near realistic. i did do a bit of research, but other then that i've had no experience with this kind of thing. alright, let's begin!

Varian sat on a piece of wood from the now ruined caravan. It turned out Varian had been right about the broken rib, and he had also gained a bad cut down half of his leg. Cassandra sat in front of him, inspecting the injury. She shook her head, muttering to herself. She reached into the med-kit she had next to her and brought out the suture kit. "Alright kid, I gotta sew this up. It's gonna hurt, so you might wanna find something to bite down on."

She opened the kit and took out the curved needle. She shook her head. "I've never done this before, so I guess we'll be figuring it out together." Varian smiled nervously. "Wow, thanks for all the reassurance Cassandra." Cassandra sighed. "Just don't faint on me or something." She put the tip of the needle to Varian leg, about a centimeter away from the cut. Varian bit into his glove and looked away. He felt a sharp pain in his leg, and knew that Cassandra had begun. He squeezed his eyes shut and bit his glove harder.

Varian's eyes snapped open in panic when he heard Cassandra murmur "Shoot." Seeing his panic, she was quick to say "It's fine. I just messed up a little, it's alright." Varian nodded and shut his eyes again. 

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After about fifteen minutes, the stitches where finally done. Cassandra put a hand on Varian's arm in a rare display of concern. "You okay kid? I know stitches hurt a lot, I had to get plenty of them as a kid." Varian nodded. "Yeah I'm okay. Thanks Cassandra." she smiled at him. "You know you can call me Cass right? All of my friends do." She saw how his eyes widened a tiny bit, saw the carefully concealed look of surprise. "Oh um, thanks Cass" he said rubbing the back of his neck. He hissed in pain and put his arm back down. She looked at him, her eyes filled with concern. "Maybe we should get you somewhere more comfortable." he nodded and started to try to stand up, only to find himself being picked up by Cassandra. She looked around, searching the area for anything soft to put him on. 

The caravan was still mostly intact, just a few pieces of the sides were missing. For the most part, they seemed to have gotten very lucky. The caravan was fixable, most of the group had been wrapped in Rapunzel's hair, therefore uninjured, and the two that hadn't didn't have any fatal injuries.

Lance had broken his wrist, so of course he was milking it for all he was worth. Cassandra was pretty sure that he could manege to get to one place from another by himself, but she helped him anyway (not without her fair share of complaining, mind you).

She saw a large pillow a few yards away and began walking towards it. She reached it and gently put Varian down, and he smiled gratefully at her. "Thanks Cass." she nodded and stood up. "Don't worry about it. I'm gonna go find Rapunzel."

After several minutes, she found the princess's long hair, and followed it to find the princess herself. Rapunzel was sitting on a large rock next to one of the black rocks, eyes looking at the ground. "Hey Cass." she said, looking up. Cassandra sat down next to her. "Hey Rapunzel. You okay?" Rapunzel nodded and looked down at her hands. "I'm alright Cassandra. Just thinking." "About what?" Cassandra asked. Rapunzel sighed. "About Varian. Cass, you and I both know he's here for a reason, and I think I may have found out what that reason is." 

Cassandra stared at her, curious. "What do you mean?" she asked. Rapunzel sighed again. "You know how when I touch one of the black rocks, there's an explosion? Well..." Rapunzel reached towards the black rock next to her and put her hand on it. Cassandra jumped back, waiting for the huge explosion. Nothing happened. She stared at Rapunzel. Rapunzel smiled. "You'll notice nothing happened. They've stopped reacting to me. But Cassandra, they reacted to Varian. I think he has some sort of connection to them." 

Cassandra cupped her chin with her hand. "How did they react to him?" She asked. Rapunzel shrugged. "They just started glowing." Cassandra nodded slowly. "Maybe your right. Maybe he does have a connection with them. We'll find out. Maybe ask Adira when she next shows up." Rapunzel raised an eyebrow. "What makes you think Adira will know anything?" It was Cassandra's turn to shrug. "I don't know. Call it a gut feeling."

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Lance had dragged himself over to where Varian sat (with great difficulty, quite a heroic effort if he did say so himself) to keep him company. He was sitting with him and telling him some very interesting tales when he heard it. A rustling in the bushes nearby. He quieted down and put a finger to his lips to tell Varian to do the same. The rustling grew louder until two very familiar faces emerged. 

Lance wasn't sure his smile had ever been so big. He was on his feet in an instant, his arms outstretched. "Angry! Red!" The girls looked at him, their smiles almost as wide as his. They ran into his embrace, laughing happily. When Lance finally let them go, he turned to Varian and said, "Varian, meet Angry and Red. Red and Angry, meet Varian."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i really love Varian and Cass's friendship, so i tried to put that in there a little


	7. Enter Ruddiger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angry, Red and Varian get to know each other a little better. Oh, and Adira comes to visit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi everyone, sorry this chapter took so long.

Varian sat on the cushion Cassandra had put him on. Red seemed like a sweet girl, quiet and shy, while Angry seemed to fit her name quite well. Lance and Red were currently engaged in a sword fighting duel (Red was winning), and Angry was staring at Varian. He waved awkwardly, wincing as he moved his broken rib. Angry, having deemed him worthy, scooted closer to him and began to talk. "So, you're from the circus, huh?" Varian nodded. Angry smiled, a pleased look on her face and turned back to watch her sister. Varian, now confused, did the same.

Red, despite her small size, was quickly defeating Lance. Varian watched as she flipped and turned, using her feet to rebound against a tree and bringing her sword slashing down towards Lance's head. At the last moment, she changed direction, swinging her sword off to the side. She landed solidly on the ground and smiled sweetly. Angry slowly applauded and said "That was much better then last time. He lasted all of five minutes." Varian snorted. Angry turned him, grinning. "You think you could do any better?" Varian's smile disappeared and he shook his head rapidly. Angry giggled and said, "Don't worry V. Wasn't gonna make you try." Varian smiled awkwardly .

"Okay good 'cause I'd be dead within two seconds." he said. Angry smiled. "I doubt that. I think you'd be dead in one." Varian laughed. "Maybe." Lance walked over to them, grinning. "I don't know Angry, Varian might be able to take her." Angry laughed and shook her head. "Yeah right." Lance shook his head. "You haven't seen him fight. It's amazing" he sat down next to Varian, scooping him up in a one armed hug. Varian, now slightly uncomfortable but happy to be complimented, smiled awkwardly and said "Umm I-I'm pretty sure she would win. She's smaller then me, therefor faster, and I do believe she has better balance." Lance let go of him and laughed. "It's amazing. One second you're swinging around in trees, having absolutely no problem at all, and the next you're tripping over your own feet. It's hilarious." 

"Well I'd say he could beat her. If he was in top shape, that is." Varian jumped at the new voice behind him, and turned to see Adira casually sitting behind him, somehow managing to sneak her way into the group without any of them noticing. Varian smiled. Typical Adira. "Hi Adira." "Hello Hairstripe." a huge smile spread across Lance's face and he spread his arms out wide. "Adira! How are you doing on this lovely morning?" Varian glanced up and the sky. "It's afternoon. And it's about to rain." Lance put his hand on Varian's arm and dramatically put a hand up to the sky. "Ah, but clouds can be just as beautiful as the sun. You just have to look at them in a different way." "Lance, it's raining." 

Lance looked up and jumped when a raindrop splashed in his eye. Adira raised an eyebrow. "We should find shelter. The storm's about to get a whole lot worse." Varian swallowed nervously. "How much worse?" he asked, his voice trembling a little. Adira shrugged. "I don't know Hairstripe. Its nearly impossible to tell the level of a storm just by looking at it. If I had to guess, I'd say it's about two times as big as anything in Corona. You've most likely been through worse though." Varian frowned. "We need to get the others. Then we need to get to high ground." Lance nodded. "I'll get them. I'm sure the lovely lady Adira can help you with the high ground part." 

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Ten minutes later they where all huddled in a cave high up on the mountain. Eugene complained endlessly about the hard ground, while Lance was singing parts from random songs and Cassandra was covering her ears and groaning. Varian liked Lance's singing, but he had to admit it was rather loud. Rapunzel was smiling and being her usual happy self with Pascal on her shoulder, and Adira was sitting alone in the corner sharpening her sword. Which didn't make any sense since the sword was made out of the rocks, but maybe she just wanted something to do, and Angry and Red sat together playing some kind of game.

Varian sat with his back to the cave wall, staring out at all his friends. He could hear the storm raging outside, and was glad Adira had warned them. A black rock had sprouted up to his right, and he really didn't want to touch it, so he leaned to the left.

Suddenly, there came a loud, eerie screaming sound from outside the cave. Varian leapt up, immediately regretting it as he felt a sharp pain in his side. "Did you guys hear that?" He asked. Everyone shook their heads. "How did you not hear that? It was really loud!" The noise came again, this time heard by everyone. They all crowded around the cave opening, looking out into the night. Varian walked out a little ways past the opening, much to Cassandra's vexation. "Varian! Get back here! You can't go out, it's to dangerous!" "I'll be careful!" he called before he vanished into the night. 

It was dark outside, and Varian couldn't say he was a fan of the dark. He kept running into trees, which he was pretty sure couldn't be good for his injury. He was getting closer to the sound, but he still wasn't sure where it came from. He stumbled blindly on, running into yet more trees until he found the source. 

A small dark shape was struggling with a large boulder it seemed to have gotten its foots stuck under. When he got closer, Varian saw that it was a raccoon. He gently helped it get its paw out, then carried it back to the cave. To his surprise, it didn't struggle at all. It seemed perfectly happy being carried in his arms.

When he got back to the cave, everyone crowded around him, all trying to see the raccoon. Rapunzel was the most exited, trying to pet it and asking Varian questions. "Where did you find him? Is he okay? Do you think he'll want to stay with us? Oh Varian, what are you gonna name him?" 

Varian thought for a moment, then said "Ruddiger. I think Ruddiger fits him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so, Adira's becoming a much bigger part of this then i meant her to be XD i guess she's just a fun character to write  
> sorry this chapter was weird, it wasn't very well thought out XD we'll start getting on with the story next chapter i promise!  
> i hope you enjoyed it, and i'll see you all in the next one!


	8. Explanation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adira explains some things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi everyone! back at it again with the trash XD  
> i also just realized i misspelled were in chapter 4, so that's hurting me XD

Varian sat in the cave, Ruddiger on his lap. The raccoon seemed to have taken a liking to him, and would not leave Varian's side. It had been almost three hours, and the storm outside was still raging. Varian sighed and rested his head against the cave wall. Ruddiger chittered and pressed his face into Varian's chest. Varian smiled and rubbed his ears.

"That raccoon really likes you, huh?" Eugene sat down next to him, smiling. Varian shrugged. "He seems to." Eugene reached out to pet Ruddiger, but the raccoon only backed up and began growling at him. Eugene quickly snapped his hand back. "Woah! Careful there!" Varian, surprised, gently pulled Ruddiger away from Eugene. Eugene shook his hand vigorously, even though Ruddiger hadn't bitten him, and said "What's his problem? He almost ruined my perfect hand!" Varian raised an eyebrow. "He didn't even open his mouth Eugene. He was just warning you." "He didn't have to try to kill me though!" _"He didn't."_

 _\--------------------_ \------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cassandra watched Varian and Eugene from where she was sitting across the cave. She was a little nervous that Varian was so close to the black rocks (there was one to his right), but she figured it would be fine. Rapunzel had told her that the rocks had only glowed for Varian, and she doubted glowing could harm the boy. Still though, she didn't want to see him more hurt then he already was. The journey through the storm had not improved his already broken ribs, and a few of his stitches had been torn out. 

Cassandra sighed, thinking about the stupid risk Varian had taken. She admired his bravery, but didn't know why he would run _towards_ a potentially dangerous creature. One of the first things she had learned from her father was to never put herself in unnecessary danger. It was a rule she broke often, but it still concerned her to see one of her friends do it.

She sighed, and stretched her arms and glanced around. It was about five p.m, and she had to admit she was getting a little tired. Lance was still singing, and Angry and Red had started an entirely different kind of game, one that involved throwing rocks at each other, so naturally no one was safe. Rapunzel sat in the corner, Pascal on her shoulder. Max and Fidella (who they had manged to get down the mountain) sat next to each other, while Adira had gone back to sharpening her sword. 

Cassandra stood up, and made her way over to Eugene and Varian. "I hear we have a dangerous animal on the loose." she said, her mouth curving into a smirk. Eugene grinned, and put a hand dramatically to his forehead. "Oh Cassandra, you should have seen this mighty beast try to rid me of my perfect hand. Your cold heart would have loved it." Varian rolled his eyes and continued to pet Ruddiger. Cassandra sat down next to Eugene and said, "Speaking of mighty beasts, you shouldn't have run off like that Varian. It was reckless and dangerous. You could have gotten hurt." Varian raised a hand to the back of his neck "I know. I-I don't really know what i was thinking." Cassandra sighed. "Just be more careful next time, okay?" Varian smiled and nodded. "Right, okay."

Cassandra glanced back at the rest of the group and saw that Rapunzel was now talking to Adira. She frowned, still not trusting the white-haired woman. She tried to listen in on their conversation, but they were too quiet. Suddenly, Adira stood up and began walking towards Cassandra, her eyes fixed on Varian. She came to a stop before them, looking grave.

"Hairstripe. The princess tells me that the black rocks responded to you." 

Varian, looking nervous, nodded. "They um, they glowed when I touched them." Adira frowned and said "This could change everything. If you somehow had a connection to the moonstone...." Eugene held up a hand. "Hold up. What's the moonstone?" Adira sighed, looking tired. "It is the opposite of the sundrop. I will explain in more detail later, but for now all you need to know is this. Your father, Quirin, was caught up in an explosion involving the moonstone. The moonstone controls the black rocks by the way. I'm not sure but some of its power may have been transferred to him, which in turn was passed on to you. I need more evidence to be sure." 

Varian put a hand to his hair and rubbed the blue streak. "It would explain this." he frowned. "Gah! I don't know, if there was a connection, I would have known by now right?" he glanced at the faces of the people surrounding him. "Right?" 

Rapunzel put a hand on his shoulder. "We'll figure it out together Varian. I promise."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> random head cannon, i don't think Varian would have killed the queen or Cassandra in the original series. he said he wanted to make Rapunzel feel the same amount of pain he did, but that wasn't the pain of losing his father, it was the possibility of it. i think he wanted her to feel that threat.
> 
> not related to the story, i just wanted to throw that out there XD i could be very wrong about this
> 
> it is now almost 2 am, so bye!


	9. Well, This Just Got Harder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adira has some weird friends...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i realized in the last chapter....the dreaded promise has been made.
> 
> i actually didn't mean to do that XD

Varian was getting really tired. Ruddiger was a comforting weight on his lap, so Varian returned the favor by rubbing the raccoon's ears. Eugene was asleep next to him, his head resting on Varian's shoulder. In fact, everyone except for him was fast asleep.

Varian was used to being the last one awake, in fact it was quite common for him, but he never quite got over the lonely feeling that came with it. He sighed and rested his head on the cave wall. He closed his eyes and tried to sleep, and to his surprise it worked.

By the time it was morning, the storm was over.

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The sun had just peeked over the horizon and Adira was already pushing the group to get going. "Come on Hairstripe, time to move." she shook Varian's shoulder in a vain attempt to get him to wake up quickly. 

Varian groaned and blinked. He put a hand to his eyes as if blocking a light and muttered "Already?" Adira poked him in the arm with her sword."Come on, we don't have time for this. You too Fishskin. Get up." Eugene groaned, much like Varian had and said "Seriously? I was in the middle of an amazing dream! Are you happy now Adira?" Varian (who was rubbing his arm in the spot Adira had poked) just rolled his eyes.

Rapunzel smiled fondly as she looked on. Varian had only been with the group for a few weeks, but he already felt like family. 

She crossed the small distance between them in only a few steps and sat down next to Varian and Eugene. Eugene put his arm around her shoulder. "Look, Adira, you want to get going, trust me I get it! But we're overlooking simple logic here. The caravan's broken, probably even more so after that storm, and we can't walk all the way to... to... wherever we're going! Even if wasn't a long way away we can't risk Varian hurting his ribs or leg more. We have to wait."

Rapunzel nodded, agreeing with him. "Eugene's right Adira. We can't risk that. We'll have to wait until we fix the caravan." Varian looked at her, an unreadable look on his face. Adira looked unhappy, but excepted Eugene and Rapunzel's conclusion.

Rapunzel jumped up and clapped her hands happily. "Well if we're gonna fix the caravan we'd better get a move on! This will be so great! We'll get to have bonding time, and this will give an opportunity to give it some new decorations I've been meaning too! Oh and also..." Rapunzel left the cave and made her way down the hill with Eugene hanging on to her every word. Or at least she hoped he was. She stopped in front of the caravan and felt her heart plummet.

It was in ruins.

Eugene had been right, the storm had made it so much worse. The sides where barely recognizable, and the roof was in a million tiny pieces. The floor was mostly intact, but the wheels were nowhere in sight. 

A gasp from behind her signaled the rest of the group's arrival. She turned to see Varian standing right behind her with the rest of the group behind him. He looked slightly intimidated. 

"Well this just got a lot harder."

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Varian was frustrated. He sat just outside of the work zone, and he was incredibly bored. Rapunzel had insisted he stayed on the sidelines, only helping if absolutely necessary, and he hated it. 

He sighed and went back to the game of catch he was playing with Ruddiger and a couple of large rocks. He fell into a rhythm, Throw, catch, throw, catch, throw, catch, throw, drop the ball, pick it up, throw, catch, throw. 

He heard a noise behind him in the woods and turned to look towards the woods behind him. He glanced back at his friends, none of whom seemed to have heard it. He looked back towards the woods, wondering what to do. It wasn't a good idea to go into the woods alone, but he knew the caravan needed to be fixed as soon as possible, so he couldn't just drag one of the others away for something that was most likely nothing.

He stood up, gesturing for Ruddiger to stay behind, and started walking into the trees, careful not to touch any of the black rocks that had sprouted up in the area. He knew that the glowing couldn't hurt him, but it did unnerve him to see it.

All of the sudden something grabbed him and a rough hand covered his mouth. He struggled, kicking and trying to bite the hand, until a cold breath brushed over his ear, and a man's voice whispered "Don't move. It'll only get worse for you." Varian's eyes went wide and he froze, his mind racing. Who was this man? Why was he here? What did he want?

But over it all was one thought.

 _Well_ , _I just messed up big time._

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Rapunzel hummed as she pounded her hammer against a nail in the side of the caravan. The sun was shining in the sky, a huge contrast to the day before. As she worked, she heard unfamiliar footsteps behind her. She turned, curious to see the newcomer.

A lime-yellow eyed man held a knife to the throat a struggling Varian. 

Rapunzel gasped, her eyes widening. She got into a fighting stance, holding her hair in her hands. 

"What is it Princess?" Adira said as she too turned around. Her face switched from a calm expression into one of complete terror, then anger.

"Let the boy go Hector." she said angrily. "Wait you know this guy?" Eugene shrieked, panicked. Adira nodded. "I'll explain later. We used to be coworkers." Hector laughed. "Coworkers Sister? No, we where some of the greatest warriors of all time. Until you went soft. Have you forgotten our promise Sister? Tell me!" he screamed, pressing the knife further into Varian's neck.

Adira shook her head calmly. "No Hector, I have not forgotten. But times change. You know that better then anyone." Hector huffed. "You may have lost your way but I have not." He turned to Rapunzel. "Turn back now and I will deliver the boy to you safely. If not, well..."

Then, before anyone could stop him, he disappeared back into the woods.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so, sorry this chapter took so long. i'll try to get my upload schedule sorted out, so i guess we'll see how that goes. but hey, at least we're finally getting along with the story!  
> by the way, i looked at adira's wiki fandom page and it says that she's hundreds of years old. is that true?  
> i hope you enjoyed it, and i'll see you in the next chapter!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i officially stink at getting things out, you know, on time. im so sorry this keeps taking me so long.

Varian stared at the ground. Out of all the things Varian had been expecting to do that day, siting behind a crazy man on the back of a rhinoceros was not one of them. And the new cut in his arm certainly didn't help. It wasn't deep, but it did hurt quite a lot. 

Varian had made the mistake of punching Hector in the nose, and had been rewarded with a sharp pain in his arm, signaling the fact that Hector's blade was now there. At least Hector's nose was now bleeding.

They had been moving for an hour, and Varian still had no idea where Hector was taking him. When he'd asked about thirty minutes ago, all he'd gotten in response was a raised eyebrow. He looked up and opened his mouth to ask again, but stopped short when he saw a huge tree looming over them. Varian's eyes widened as he stared. He hadn't even known it was _possible_ for a tree to be this large until now. Various scenarios ran through his head, simulating different reasons this tree would have grown the way it did. 

Hector stopped at the base of the tree and jumped off the rhinoceros. He grinned, and a shiver went up Varian's spine. 

"Home, sweet home."

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Rapunzel sat on a black rock, crying into her hands. Cassandra was in shock. In the past hour she'd witnessed the kidnapping of her friend, Eugene and Lance panicking to get the caravan fixed, Adira explaining that Varian was in the hands of potentially one of the most dangerous men alive, and the mental break down of someone she never thought would break.

She rubbed comforting circles into the princess's back, murmuring soothing words. "Shhhh, it's okay Raps. We'll get him back, I promise." Rapunzel looked up and smiled weakly at her. "Yeah, you're right. We always make it work" she sighed and looked at the ground. "but I'm so scared for him Cass." Cassandra nodded. "I know Rapunzel. So am I." 

Rapunzel sobbed. "What if we can't get to him in time? What if he gets seriously hurt? Oh Cassandra, why did this have to happen? He's so sweet, he doesn't deserve any of this!" Cassandra sighed. "Trust me Raps, I'm worried for him too. But you need to keep a clear head okay? You can break down after we get him back." 

Rapunzel nodded. "You're right. I can't help him if I'm not concentrated. Alright, so what're we gonna do?" 

Cassandra grinned. "That's the Rapunzel I know. So we know what direction Hector went, and that rhino should make the trail pretty easy to follow. We just need to find him, steal Varian back, and move our awesome selves over to wherever we're going without him catching us." Cassandra stood up and dusted her hands on her pants. "What do you think Rapunzel? Pretty solid plan I'd say"

Adira choose this time to interrupt them. "Actually ShortHair, it's not a solid plan. If Hector sees you coming he'll kill the kid immediately." Rapunzel gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. "He'd really do that? But Varian's just a kid!" Adira nodded and said "Yes Princess. I have no doubt he would. So we need a better plan."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi guys, so im sorry this chapter is super short and ends kinda weird. its getting late, and i wanted to get something out.  
> i'll try to get the next chapter out soon. in the meantime, i hope you all enjoyed my trash, and i'll see you all in the next chapter:)


	11. The Great Tree

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hector needs to stop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yes that's right, my trash is back. again, im sorry about the last chapter, it was kinda weird.

Adira sat next to The Princess and Shorthair, her mind working overdrive. Hector had always been the most vicious of all the Brotherhood, and Adira had no doubts he wouldn't hesitate to hurt Hairstripe. 

Adira was _not_ about to let anything happen to Varian. She'd already failed his father, she wasn't about to fail him. 

She sat back, watching as The Princess and Shorthair argue about the best course of action. Adira herself wasn't sure what that was. Even Hector couldn't be in two places at once, and he would most likely be guarding Varian at the Great Tree. Hector was determined to keep people from getting across the tree, so he'd most likely be guarding it. But there was always a chance he wasn't. He could be anywhere, and knowing Hector, that place most likely wasn't good. 

"What do you think Adira?" she was brought back to reality by The Princess's question. The golden-haired girl was sitting across from her, and eager expression on her face while Shorthair glared at Adira.

Adira smiled. "I'm sorry, while you two where busy arguing with each other, I was creating brilliant schemes to get Hairstripe back. What where you saying?" Rapunzel laughed and said "I was asking if you thought Hector's still nearby." Adira shook her head. "No Princess, I don't think he is. He's most likely at the Great Tree."

"The what now?" Fishskin said as he sat down next to them with Earrings (Lance) Red and Angry (Adira didn't need nicknames for them, their names already had defining traits). Adira sighed. The ignorance of these people! "The Great Tree. It's Hector's home, and the former residence of Zhan Tiri." Fishskin's eyes widened. "Hold up, Zhan Tiri? As in the evil demon who wants all of Corona dead? That Zhan Tiri?" Adira nodded, exasperated. "Don't worry, all the evil magic has been compromised. It's the place of Beauty it was before Zhan Tiri came." Fishskin smiled and said. "Until Rhino-man moved in there." Adira nodded. "You have to understand, Hector is one of the most dangerous members of the Brotherhood. He could kill all of you with a simple swing of his sword." Shorthair frowned. "The Brotherhood? What's that?" Adira sighed and pinched her nose. "It's a group of warriors sworn to defend the Moonstone from any outsiders to the Dark Kingdom. A dead kingdom, destroyed by the Moonstone. I always thought the name was rude. The Brotherhood? Please, I'm a woman."

She glanced around at her companion's faces. Surprisingly, none of them seemed confused. "Any questions? No? Good, we need to get moving if we wanna save Varian." 

The Princess looked at her, surprised. "Varian? I thought he was Hairstripe to you." Adira frowned, quickly realizing her mistake. "I made a point of remembering his name. His father was a member of the Brotherhood, and a good friend of mine." The Princess looked surprised, then sad. "I'm so sorry Adira. It must have been hard learning that he died." Adira nodded. "Oh yes it was very hard. But let's get a move on with saving his son, shall we?"

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Hector shoved the annoying boy into the wall inside the Great Tree. He grinned as he saw the kid wince in pain. His eyes lingered on the blue streak for a moment, then he turned and walked a few paces away, and picked up a spare piece of rope. He turned back to the kid and started to tie his hands together, despite Hairstripe's struggles. 

He paused for a second, thinking in disgust about how he sounded like Adira, giving this kid nicknames. He frowned then asked a question he would never have asked if that thought hadn't entered his mind. "What's your name Kid?" the boy looked up at him, then glanced behind him looking for who Hector had spoken to. He looked back at Hector and stammered out, "V-Varian." Hector's eyes widened as he pushed back from Varian. 

A memory hit Hector hard, a memory of a friend, a favored name.

_He had been standing in front of Quirin, his old friend, when the other man had suddenly asked what Hector would name his child if he ever had one. Hector had laughed and shrugged, gesturing to himself. "Come now Quirin, you think I'm ever going to have a child?" Quirin had laughed. "No of course not. I was simply asking. Sarah wants kids eventually, and we where talking about what we should name them." Hector had raised his eyebrow, and said, "Well what would she name them?" Quirin had smiled and said, "Well, for a girl she was thinking Aurora maybe. But for a boy, then she loves the name Varian."_

The last Hector had heard of Quirin was that Sarah had died before she could name her baby boy. Quirin had named him Varian.

Hector was jerked back to the present by a tentative voice asking, "Sir? Um, sir, are you alright?" Hector shook his head to clear it and glared at Varian (Varian! Could it possibly be his friends son? Varian certainly wasn't a common name). "Of course I'm alright. Tell me, Varian, what is your father's name?" 

Varian stared at him, a wary expression on his face. "My father is dead. Why do you want to know?" A sudden panic gripped Hector's heart. He lunged forward and grabbed the boy's arm. "Just tell me!" Varian scooted back as much as he could, his wary expression transformed into fear. "Quirin! His name was Quirin!" Hector stumbled back, letting go of Varian's arm. "Quirin." He murmured as he put a hand to his forehead. Every memory he had of his old friend flashed through his mind while Varian stared at him in concern. Of course the boy had concern for his captor, he was Quirin's son after all.

He took his hand from his head in a sudden spout of determination. He would defend Quirin's memory by protecting the Dark Kingdom more fiercely then ever before.

He would finish the work his friend had started. Even if it cost him his life.

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Eugene sat next to Lance, hating every second he wasn't helping Varian. He hated not knowing what was happening, he hated being so far away, and he hated that the person he'd come to think of as family had ended up in the hands of someone so cruel. 

The group was following Hector's trail towards the Great Tree, and Eugene's nerves where rising. And judging by the terrified look and Lance's face, so was his.

They'd tried to convince Angry and Red to stay behind, telling them that it was to dangerous and they didn't want anyone else getting hurt, but the girls had refused. Angry had managed to convince them to let her and Red come with a very compelling argument. "Varian means a lot to us too you know. We're not just gonna stand here and let Hector do this! Besides, even if you did leave us behind we'd just find a way to follow you"

Eugene smiled, remembering the sisters' determination. In the end they'd let them come, mostly because it was too dangerous for them to be on their own (but they didn't need to know that). 

He sighed and leaned back against the wall of the caravan. "You know, if we weren't trying to rescue our friend from a crazy rhino man, I'd say this was pretty relaxing. As it is though, I'm scared to death." Lance nodded, agreeing with him. "Yup, me to buddy, me to."

The rest of the ride was spent in silence, until a sudden gasp from the front brought Eugene to his feet."Blondie? What's going on?" he asked. "Eugene, you need to come look at this." Eugene crawled up to the front seat next to Rapunzel, then let out a gasp identical to hers. 

"Oh, so _that's_ why they call it the Great Tree."

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Rapunzel entered the great tree with the entire group by her side (minus Varian). She was insanely worried for Varian, and a strong protectiveness gripped her heart. If they got out of this alive, no one was _ever_ so much as _touching_ Varian again.

She began the long climb across the tree, whisper-shouting Varian's name the entire way. Cassandra followed her, rolling her eyes and glaring at Adira every few minutes, and Eugene and Lance were behind Cassandra arguing about pointless random things with the girls.

When they reached a split in the path, Rapunzel hesitated before choosing a side. She entered the tunnel and came out in a room full of scrolls. Her eyes widened as she turned to Adira. "Adira? What is all this?" Adira walked forward, a look of pure awe on her face. She bent down and picked up on of the scrolls. She shook her head, smiling. "I'm not sure, but you should see this Princess." Rapunzel walked over to her, taking the scroll from her hands.

"This is a Moonstone incantation! Wow, can I use it?" Cassandra smiled and walked over. "Just on _tiny_ problem. This is a Moonstone incatation, and you're the sundrop. If anyone can use it, it's probably Varian." Rapunzel's smile faltered and she put the scroll in her bag. "You're right, I'll give it to Varian."

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Varian watched Hector as he paced back and forth. He'd already asked what the matter was twice, and both attempts had been met with a snarl and a fist in his face. Needless to say, he wasn't about to ask again. 

Hector was growling to himself, muttering about "Stupid Adira and her dumb sundrop". Varian frowned as he saw Hector break his pattern and walk towards him. He grabbed Varian's arm and growled, "Come on, let's move. I'm not about to let your stupid friends anywhere near the Dark Kingdom."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have... no excuse.  
> i hope you all enjoyed this, and i'll see you all in the next chapter!


	12. Wither And Decay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i can't keep to a schedule so save my life.

As Varian was being dragged along by Hector, he grew more and more concerned for his friends. Hector was looking angrier by the second, and he kept a steady hand on his sword. He kept muttering about the Dark Kingdom (whatever that was) and the Moonstone.

They rounded the corner and ran straight into Rapunzel. She stared in shock for a few moments, then a huge smile spread across her face. "Varian! Oh Varian, I'm so glad you're alright! You are alright, aren't you?" Varian started to answer, but then he felt cold metal against his neck. Hector snarled at Rapunzel. "I warned you _precious Sundrop._ Leave now and no harm will befall the boy."

Rapunzel's smile fell as she took a step back. "Please don't hurt him! Please, he means so much to us!" Varian looked behind Rapunzel to see Lance, Eugene with Pascal on one shoulder, and Ruddiger on the other one, Max and Fidella, and Angry and Red sitting on the horse's backs. Varian looked around, concerned. _W_ _here's Cass and Adira?_

His unspoken question was answered as he heard a loud yell behind him. Hector looked behind him, only to get smacked in the face by a very angry Cassandra. He stumbled back, letting go of Varian. Rapunzel held her arms out, and Varian wasted no time in running to her. She grabbed him and held him close, a look of intense relief on her face. "Varian!" she started crying, the smile back on her face. Varian smiled back at her. 

He heard the clashing of metal on metal, and turned to see Cassandra furiously swinging her sword, never managing to quite get a hit in, but also blocking every attack from Hector. He snarled at her, and rushed forward. A moment of panic flashed through Varian, because _he was to fast, Cass wasn't gonna be able to block,_ but then Adira was there, swinging her own sword up to meet Hector's. Varian watched in awe as the fight went back and forth, neither side gaining the upper hand, both sides evenly matched.

Adira brought her sword swinging down towards Hector's face, but he ducked and rolled out of the way. He landed gracefully on the floor, kicking Adira's feet out from under her. Cass charged forward, only to be met with a fist in her face. She fell to the ground, unconscious.

Rapunzel stood up, a concerned look in her eyes. She ran to her friend as Adira got up from the ground and continued to exchange blows with Hector, her sword moving too fast for Varian to see. They brought their swords together, each straining to get through the others defense. Adira eventually won, her sword shattering Hector's. He fell back, and growled, "You put disgrace on the entire Brotherhood. Qurin would be ashamed." Adira looked shocked, then her expression changed from calm to dangerous.

Hector backed up to the edge of a platform, his foot almost over the edge. Adira pointed her sword at his face, radiating confidence. She grinned, and opened her mouth to say something, but was cut short when Hector dropped into a crouch and slammed his entire body full-force into hers. Her eyes widened as she fell to the ground, hard.

Hector stepped over her legs, grabbed her sword and pointed it at her neck. He smiled grimly as he swung the sword back, ready to finish the fight.

Before even he knew it, Varian's feet where moving. He threw himself in between Hector and Adira before he could bring the sword down, and closed his eyes.

Nothing happened. He opened his eye slowly, glancing around the room. It was like time had stopped. Rapunzel stared at him, absolute terror in her eyes, her hand extended towards him. Cassandra sat next to her, her eyes wide. Hector was frozen, Adira's sword still ready to attack. His face switched from surprised, to sad, then landed on angry. 

"Move." Varian shook his head. "Yeah, sorry,not gonna happen." Hector sighed. Just then, Cass slammed into him, pushing him off the edge of the platform. Hector's eyes widened, then narrowed in anger as he grabbed the front of Varian shirt, throwing him off balance. Varian felt a moment of panic as he felt himself falling, then he was over the edge falling into the darkness below.

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Rapunzel screamed as Varian fell over the edge. She ran to the side and looked around wildly. _If I can find him I can catch him, I just need to find him!_ But Varian was nowhere in sight. She fell to her knees, tears springing up in her eyes. She leaned over the edge and screamed his name. " _VARIAN!"_

She felt a hand on her arm and turned to see Eugene, a shocked look on his face and tears glistening in his eyes. "I-" he stopped, a sad look on his face. "He might be fine Blondie. That kid can do incredible things." Rapunzel shook her head, "Eugene I- what are we gonna do?" she threw herself into Eugene's arms, sobbing. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Cassandra staring at her hands, a confused look on her face. Rapunzel broke away from Eugene, crossing to Cass and putting a hand on her arm.

"Cassandra?" Cass turned to look at her, something unexplainable in her eyes. Rapunzel pulled her into a hug, and for once she didn't protest. "I'm so sorry! I didn't expect Hector to grab him, I should have seen it coming!" Rapunzel pulled back at looked at her, dismayed. "Cassandra! It's not your fault. No one could have seen that coming. Besides, I wasn't there in time. It wasn't anyone's fault." 

Cass sighed. "He's gone, isn't he? Forever." Rapunzel dropped her hand from Cass's shoulder and looked at the ground. "I- I hope not." 

"Rapunzel?" Rapunzel turned to see Red staring at her, barely containing her anguish. Angry stood just behind her, her arms crossed and defensive. Then she dropped her arms and ran towards Rapunzel. "Please tell me what I just saw wasn't real." Rapunzel shook her head, tears streaming down her face. She stroked Angry's hair "It's gonna be oka Angry." She turned to Red and repeated the action. "It's gonna be alright Red." the girl shook her head. "Catalina. Please call me Catalina." Rapunzel tilted her head, surprised, then nodded. "Of course Catalina." 

She turned to see Max comforting Fidella, and Lance standing with a fazed look in his eyes, like he couldn't quite believe what had just happened. Eugene walked over to him and started talking in a low tone.

Rapunzel hugged the girls tight, hoping against hope that Varian had somehow survived.

Adira came up to Rapunzel and put a hand on her shoulder. "I wouldn't be surprised if Varian did survive. That kid is tough. However, I'm more worried about Hector." Rapunzel looked at her, confused. "Out of everyone, wouldn't Hector be the _most_ likely to survive?" Adira nodded. "Yes he is. And that's what worries me. Before we cut communication with each other, Hector often spoke about Demanitus' spear. The spear is the one thing keeping Zhan Tiri's evil magic away from the great tree. He always said that if he had to, he would release that magic again."

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Turns out, Varian did survive. Varian had landed on top of Hector, shielding him from the force of the landing. He wasn't entirely unharmed, but nothing new was broken. Hector on the other hand.... was still out cold. Varian placed two finger tentatively on Hector's neck, searching for a pulse, and luckily he found one. He sighed in relief and got off Hector's back. He glanced around, taking in his surroundings. He was in a part of the tree not much different from the rest of it, aside from the fact that there was a random spear sitting in the middle of a huge clump of vines. 

He walked over to the spear and gently tapped it. Then, deciding it was best to leave the spear alone, he began to search for a way back up the tree. He searched for a good fifteen minutes but there was nothing. He sighed and turned to look at the spear, only to see Hector pulling it out of the vines. Varian stared as the vines began to reach for Hector. Hector shouted as one of them grabbed his leg. Varian ran forwards, trying to reach him but it was already to late. Hector was engulfed by the vines long before Varian could reach him. The vines began pushing Hector, spear in hand, towards the top of the tree. Varian, now panicked but seeing the vines traveling in the exact direction he wanted to go, grabbed one of the vines, closed his eyes, and held on tight. He felt himself moving upward and held on tighter.

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Rapunzel wasn't sure how long she had been standing there for. She was frozen, not sure what to do next. Wasn't even sure if she could move her feet. 

That is, until she heard the rumbling. She wasn't the only one. "Does anyone else hear the ominous rumbling?" Eugene asked, a concerned look on his face. Rapunzel undid her hair and got into a defensive position while Cass got out her sword. 

The one thing Rapunzel had _not_ expected to see was a huge mass of vines with glowing-eyed Hector in the middle and Varian clinging to the side with an absolutely terrified look on his face. 

Rapunzel's heart soared at the sight of Varian. _I knew he wasn't dead!_ She saw him open his eyes the tiniest bit and wave a little at the group before closing his eyes tight again. "I'm not a fan of heights!" he called. Rapunzel laughed. "I gotcha!" Eugene called. He ran to the vines and called for Varian to jump down. Varian did so, slightly reluctantly, and Eugene caught him. "Thank you!" Varian gasped, still terrified. Eugene smiled. "Anytime. Now, care to tell us what happened?" Varian shuddered and recounted what he had seen. Adira sighed. "It is exactly as I feared. Zhan Tiri's magic has been released." "Wait, who's Zhan Tiri?" Varian asked, confused. Eugene patted him on the shoulder. "Later. Right now I'm guessing we've got a demon to defeat! Well not the demon technically, but same concept." "Wait did you say _demon?"_

 **" _No one enters Zhan Tiri's tree and lives."_** Hector's voice was a mix between his and who Rapunzel guessed was Zhan Tiri's, and it sent shivers down her spine. Rapunzel planted her feet into the ground, getting ready for whatever was to come. 

A bright green vine shot towards her, and she ducked to avoid it, Eugene cutting it into pieces behind her. She stood up, smiling, only to be knocked off her feet by another vine. She landed hard on her stomach, then quickly flipped so she could see any coming attack. A vine came swinging towards her, so she raised her feet to meet it, knocking it off course. "Eugene! Protect Catalina and Angry!" Eugene nodded and ran towards the girls. They didn't look too happy, but they accepted it.

Rapunzel turned to see Varian ducking beneath a vine, then springing up slashing it with a sword she assumed he'd gotten from Cass. Speaking of Cass, she was right next to Rapunzel. "The spear! If it blocked the magic once, maybe it can do it again!" Rapunzel glanced at Hector. "Cassandra you genius! That just might work. You get the spear, I'll cover you!" Cass nodded and started to move towards Hector and the spear, but stopped when he saw her coming and threw the spear off the cliff. "Well there goes that plan." Cass muttered. "What now?" Rapunzel frowned, then her eyes brightened. "The incantation!" Cass looked at her, one eyebrow raised. "The Moonstone incantation? Do you think it's safe to use? We don't even know what it does!" Rapunzel smiled and took the scroll from her bag. "Well let's find out! Varian, catch!" she threw the scroll as hard as she could in Varian's direction, which must've been too hard because it sailed right over his head. He glanced at her then ran to pick it up. "Sorry Varian!" she called sheepishly. 

She saw him jump over a swinging vine and stoop down to pick up the incantation. "Rapunzel?" he called. "What do you want me to do with this?" "It's a Moonstone incantation! Maybe you can use it!" Varian looked down at the scroll, an unreadable look on his face. Then he looked up and nodded. "I'll try." 

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Varian looked at the page, then frowned. _Wither and decay? That doesn't sound too good._ He glanced around, thinking about ways he could keep his friends safe if this went wrong. Varian wasn't even sure it was gonna work, but he didn't think he had a choice. By now everyone except him, Cass ,and Rapunzel was dangling from their toes, so he had to hurry.

Ducking under and jumping over vines, Varian slowly made his way to the center of the vines where Hector was. Putting both hands against the vines, Varian began to sing (he didn't know why, it just felt right).

" _Wither and decay. End this destiny."_ A dark spot spread across the vine, starting from where Varian had put his hands. Varian stopped singing and stared at his hands. Then he pressed them back against the vine and started again, stronger this time. " _Wither and decay. End this destiny. Break these earthly chains, and set the spirit free. The spirit free."_

Darkness spread across the vines. Varian squeezed his eyes shut. "S _unshine, clouds rain, suffering, hardship, pain. Take away the strain, and that which still remains."_

He opened his eyes, all trace of blue in them was gone, leaving only black behind.

" _Break its chains"_

Hector fell from the now-dead vines.

Varian's eyes went back to blue.

Then he promptly collapsed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the sword fighting in this is probably really unrealistic, sorry about that  
> i've been wondering why Cass never used the hurt incantation in the show. i mean, it's a moonstone incantation isn't it?  
> i hope you all enjoyed my trash, and ill see you next time!


	13. Parasite

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, it could never be as simple as it looked, could it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i've pretty much given up on keeping an actual schedule. again, i'm so so so so so so so sorry this takes me so long.

Lance stared at the limp form of Varian on the ground. What he had just done..... was incredible. And scary. Incredibly scary. Eugene was next to Lance, his eyes as wide as saucers. Everyone else was scattered around the room with varying degrees of shock on their faces.

Lance was the first to snap out of it and realize that Varian might need help. He walked stiffly over to the unconscious boy and knelt beside him. "Varian? You okay there buddy?" Varian groaned and sat up, putting a hand to his head. "Ugh. My head is killing me. Did it work?" Lance smiled. "It worked. You did it." Varian grinned and waved his hands sarcastically. "Hooray. Now what?" Lance shrugged. "Dunno." he turned around and beckoned Eugene over. "I guess we should take care of crazy rhino man. Eugene! Stop staring like you've just seen a chicken dance with a ladybug and come help us!" Eugene, looking slightly confused, slowly began walking towards them. Varian raised an eyebrow at Lance. "Chicken dancing with a what now? Where did you even get that?" Lance shrugged. "Just made it up. Hurry up Eugene!"

Despite his calm exterior, Lance's mind was still racing. Varian had just single-handedly turned a evil demon's weapon into a pile of dust. Lance wasn't sure how to feel about that. He was both awed and slightly terrified.

Whenever he looked at Varian he was reminded of his cold black eyes. He was reminded of death slowly creeping up the vines. He was also reminded that Varian had saved all of their lives.

_How did one kid do so much damage?_

Lance was brought back from his musings by a sudden groan from Hector's direction. Lance frowned and stood up, swiftly walking towards him. "You, sir, had best explain yourself."

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Rapunzel wasn't sure whether she should be impressed or scared. When she had guessed that Varian had a connection to the Black Rocks, she had never expected anything like this. 

Glowing hair? She sees it practically every day. The possibility of rock manipulation? She'd considered it. Perhaps even glowing eyes? Sure, why not?

But _this?_

This was a whole new level of extreme. 

Varian seemed to be taking it surprisingly well for someone who had been panicking about the mere possibility of having powers, though Rapunzel suspected he just hadn't fully absorbed what he'd just done. 

She shook her head as she watched Lance question Hector. Aside from the Decay Incantation, what of the vines? She had no doubt that the vines where gone, but there was the possibility that they weren't Zhan Tiri's only defense for the tree.

Hector leaned forward, a grin on his face as he whispered something into Lance's ear. Lance jerked back with a panicked shout. "WHAT?" Rapunzel sighed and walked over. "So what's going on over here?" she asked brightly, curios. Lance frowned. "I fear we need to get out of here as fast as possible Princess. Turns out Zhan Tiri had more surprises to throw at us." Rapunzel cocked her head. "What kind of surprises?" Lance stood up. "In short, one of us is about to get infected by a very nasty parasite if we don't leave now. We really need to hurry." Rapunzel nodded and turned to Eugene, who was sitting several feet away, not hearing a word of the Princess's and Lance's conversation. He had sat down next to Varian while Lance talked to Hector. The poor alchemist was leaning against Eugene, looking shocked. Eugene was patting his head and murmuring something about "Team Awesome" to him. 

Rapunzel shrugged, blowing off whatever Team Awesome was for the time being. "Eugene, get everyone together. We need to move." Eugene looked up, surprised. "Umm, okay. You'd better sit with Varian though. Poor kid's in shock." Rapunzel smiled sympathetically and took Eugene's place next to Varian.

A shout behind her caused her to turn to see a terrifying sight.

Eugene was on the ground, with a shadow looming on top of him.

Said shadow's name was Cassandra.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm so so so so so so so so so sorry everyone. i know this took me a really long time, i'm so sorry.  
> also im sorry this chapter was so short. i really wanted to get something out.


	14. The Fight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope you enjoy my long overdue trash. wow this took me way to long to write, im so sorry

Cassandra stood over Eugene, her face expressionless. Eugene sat on the floor, pure panic on his. "Cass, Cass, Cass! Let's work this out, shall we? Whatever I did, I'm sorry!" Cassandra raised raised her sword, ready to strike. Eugene covered his face with his hands, and prepared himself for pain.

A golden strand of Rapunzel's hair snapped around Cassandra's sword, pulling it out of her hand. Eugene sighed in relief and scrambled out from underneath Cassandra. "Ha ha! Take that Crazy Dragon Lady! Thanks Blondie. What's going on?" Rapunzel glanced at him. "Parasite." she stated simply before sprinting off towards Cassandra. Eugene chased after her. "Parasite? What do you mean, Parasite? Rapunzel!" "I'll explain later Eugene, I promise. Now help me hold her back!"

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Varian wasn't quite sure what to make of this new development. One minute he had been huddled against Eugene, and the next he was running for dear life from Cassandra. Once Eugene was no longer the prime target, Cassandra had started chasing after _him,_ which he supposed was better then her chasing anyone else, but he still didn't wanna die. 

Varian glanced behind him. To his dismay, Cassandra was only a few feet away. He turned back around and willed his feet to go faster. But _of course_ there would be a wall in his way. And _of course_ he would run into it.

He smacked headfirst into the wall and landed hard on the ground. He scrambled back to his feet, but it was already too late. Cassandra grabbed him by his arm and he squirmed. "Cassandra! Cass, please snap out of it!" Cassandra blinked, and loosened her grip on his arm. "Varian? What's going on?" Varian stared at her. "Um, Parasite?" Cassandra raised an eyebrow. "What Parasite?" Varian swallowed and pointed behind her. "That Parasite." 

Rapunzel stood behind them, apparently attempting to choke poor Eugene. Cassandra gasped and ran towards them. "Rapunzel! What the heck Raps?" Varian followed her and helped Eugene up as Cassandra fought Rapunzel. Eugene rubbed his throat, disgruntled. "Why is everyone after _me?_ " Varian smiled. "I dunno. We need to help Cass, C'mon." Eugene sighed. "Just can't get a break, can we? Okay lets go.... Hey wait up!"

Varian dashed towards Rapunzel, dodging a strand of her hair and jumping over a stray dead vine. "Princess! Rapunzel _please_ , we need you!" Rapunzel turned towards him and lifted a strand of her hair. She used it as a whip, sending it crashing into Varian and knocking him across the room. Varian felt his head smack the wall, and he slid to the ground. He lifted a hand to his head to rub it, but stopped when he felt someone tap his arm. "Varian!" Lance whispered. "Look at Rapunzel's neck. Do you see that tiny speck?" Varian squinted at the princess' arm. Then he brightened. "Good eye Lance! I bet that's the parasite." Lance grinned. "Well, what can I say, guess I'm just amazing. Now the question is, how do we get rid of it?"

Varian stared at the speck. "We can't risk directly touching it, we could get infected instead of Rapunzel." Lance glanced at him. "Yeah, after your Killing Vines act, I'm not sure we wanna risk that." Varian shuddered. "Thank you, for that Lance. I wonder if it can infect people through cloth?" 

Adira had entered the fight a few yards away, but obviously had no idea what to do. She kept swinging her sword, but hesitating right before she landed a blow. While Varian was glad she was avoiding hurting Rapunzel, he knew they couldn't win like that. "We need to do something. Now." Varian glanced around, then tore a square of cloth from his sleeve. "Lance, take this and try to get to the speck." Lance looked at him, eyes wide. "Me? Why me? Oh wait, I get it, you can't risk getting infected. Okay, well, wish me luck."

He took the square from Varian's outstretched hands and wrapped it around his hand. He began to crawl towards Rapunzel, keeping low to the ground to avoid the stray hair strands. Varian watched him go, concerned. "Good luck." He whispered.

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Lance wasn't gonna lie, he was _terrified._ Rapunzel wasn't holding back on Adira, Cassandra, and Eugene and Lance had no reason to believe she would go easy on him. He narrowly avoided a stray hair strand, and stopped for a few seconds to catch his breath. _Alright Lance. It's only a few more feet, you can do it. The others are depending on you._

He glanced behind him at Varian. He gave him a nervous thumbs up and mouthed, " _You're doing great, keep going!"_ Lance turned back towards Rapunzel, who still hadn't noticed him. Unfortunately, none of the others had either, so he was both in danger of being accidentally strangled and being stabbed. 

He crawled a few feet forwards, wincing as he put weight on his broken wrist. He gritted his teeth and crawled the next two feet to Rapunzel. He stood up behind her, putting a finger to his lips to signal the others not to reveal he was there. 

He took the square cloth and looked for the speck. Well, it wasn't really a speck up close, it was about the size of a small coin. He gently put the cloth over the parasite, and pulled it off Rapunzel.

He heard Rapunzel gasp, then a earsplitting scream escaped her mouth. She fell to her knees, still screaming. 

Then, suddenly, she stopped. She glanced around, obviously confused. "Guys? What's happening?" Lance sighed in relief. Then he grinned. "Don't worry Princess. You where infected, but I, the Amazing Lance Strongbow have saved you. You saw that, right Adira?" Adira nodded. "Well done Earrings. I must admit, I did not see that coming." Lance beamed. 

Adira turned towards Rapunzel. "Alright Princess, we need to make sure you're no longer infected. In fact, we should check everyone. Varia... I mean Hairstripe, get over here!" Lance watched Varian pick himself off the ground and jog towards them. When he reached them, Adira promptly smacked him on the head with her sword. Varian yelped and began to furiously rub his head. "What was that all about?" Adira nodded. "You're clear. If you where infected, you probably wouldn't have felt the pain, much less reacted to it. Cassandra managed to hit Rapunzel several times while they where fighting, and Rapunzel didn't even feel it."

Adira proceeded to give the rest of the group, plus Hector, the same treatment, and by the end everyone's heads where sore. Lance sighed. "Can we _please_ get out of this tree now? I swear this place is cursed." Varian laughed. "Yes Lance. It's literally cursed. By the way, who's Zhan Tiri?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> annnd it's finally out! i hope you all enjoyed, and i'll see you in the next chapter!


	15. Waiting in the Wings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's after 1 am me and i cannot function, so sorry there's no summary

Cassandra walked along side Varian, thinking about the events of the day. She couldn't remember being infected by the parasite, or anything after that until it changed targets. It was a strange feeling, almost like that part of her life had been ripped away. She supposed in some weird way, it had been. She sighed, and glance over at Varian. He was fiddling with the watch he held in his hands, twisting and turning the gears. 

He had saved everyone's lives today. He had done it, and she hadn't been fast enough.

She hadn't been _good_ enough. 

She sighed again and pinched her nose with her fingers. Varian looked at her, concerned. "You okay Cass? You seem upset." Cass frowned. "I failed today. I wasn't able to get to the spear fast enough, and I almost got you killed. I'm so sorry Varian." His eyes widened in surprise. "Okay, first of all, there way _no way_ you were getting to that spear on time." Cassandra shook her head. "I let Hector see me coming." "He was on higher ground then we where, he could see everyone. Second of all, you pushed Hector off the ledge, not me. You saved everyone back there. It was Hector's decision to bring me down with him, you couldn't have known."

Cassandra crossed her arms over her stomach. "I still can't help but feel as if I could've done more." Varian reached up and put a hand on her shoulder. "Cass, none of this was your fault." Cass gave him a tiny smile "Thanks Varian."

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They set down camp about half way through the tree, and Cassandra had offered to take the first watch. She sat at the edge of the platform, her legs hanging off the side. She glanced back at the group, only to see them all fast asleep. 

All except Varian, that is. He was sitting on top of his blanket staring at what would be the ceiling if it hadn't been to high up to see. Cassandra quietly walked around her sleeping companions to where he sat. "You okay? Can't sleep?" Varian started and looked up at her. "No, I um, I don't sleep well at night." Cassandra raised an eyebrow. "Really? How come?" Varian shrugged. "It's hard to explain. Nightmares, mostly." Cassandra blinked in surprise, but didn't question him further. He obviously didn't want to talk about it, and she knew he would come to her or Rapunzel when he wanted to.

"You wanna come stare into the darkness and contemplate the universe with me?" Varian laughed. "Is that what you do on watch?" Cassandra shrugged. "Not much else to do. C'mon, I've found a relatively soft spot of wood."

Varian stood up and followed her to the edge of the platform. He sat down next to her and took the watch he'd been messing with earlier out of his pocket. Cassandra watched him play with the gears, putting them together in different ways and making small changes to an individual gear every once in a while.

 _I guess we're all born with parts to play_ Cassandra thought as she watched him. _I know my part was meant to be more then this life I'm living. But I don't know what my destiny truly is. Maybe I'll never know._

Varian put the parts back together in their original form, then frowned at took them apart again.

Cassandra rubbed her eyes with her hand. _For now_ _, I'll keep on waiting. Just a little longer, then I'll know._

_I'll have to_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woah, this took a loooooong time to post. im so so so so so so sorry everyone. again. i promise i have not forgotten this.  
> anyways, as always, i hope you enjoyed and i'll see you next time. thanks for reading!


	16. Nightmare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian has a nightmare, and the group finally leaves the tree.

_He ran. He ran as fast as he could, but it wasn't enough. No one could run fast enough to escape... **that** thing._

_He wasn't sure how he'd gotten there. He wasn't sure why he was there. He couldn't even remember what he was running from. He just ran._

_He had to get to... something.... what was it again? He couldn't remember._

**_It_ ** _was right behind him. **It** was catching up._

 **_It_ ** _caught him. **Its** claws dug into his shoulder, and Varian screamed. Waves of pain radiated from the wound as he tried desperately to get away. He squirmed around until he was facing **It,** then instantly regretted it. **It** was grinning at him, something that only meant pain for Varian. He struggled, but in the end, he wasn't strong enough._

_He never was._

**_It_ ** _raised a hand, **Its** incredibly sharp claws gleaming in the moonlight. **It** put one to his neck, then slashed._

_The pain was instantaneous. He couldn't look down, but he could feel the sticky wetness of blood creeping down his shirt. **It** carelessly threw him to the ground, not even a thought for the one who had caused **It** so much trouble. He'd be dead soon anyway._

Varian woke with a small scream.

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Every night now. Every night Varian had the same nightmare. It was why he never slept until he had to.

He was curled up on the ground, dangerously close to the edge of the platform. Cassandra had been replaced with Eugene, who was currently snoring away with his head on his hand. Varian smiled and rolled his eyes. _I'm not getting back to sleep after that anyway. Let him sleep._

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Eugene woke up the next morning with a pillow under his head in place of his hand, and a very tired Varian sitting next to him. He yawned and sat up. "Morning Varian." Varian glanced at him and smiled. "Morning Eugene." Eugene looked around and grinned. "Looks like Team Awesome are the first ones up, huh?" Suddenly, his eyes widened. "I fell asleep, didn't I? Oh Cass is gonna kill me." Varian laughed. "Don't worry Eugene, I'm not gonna be the one to tell her. She'd kill me for not waking you up." Eugene laughed, then frowned. "Speaking of which, why didn't you wake me up? You know I wouldn't have gotten mad." 

Varian shrugged. "I didn't see the point. I couldn't sleep, so I figured I'd let you. Sorry." Eugene smiled. "You don't need to apologize. Thanks for letting me sleep, I appreciate it." Varian nodded, then turned back to stare at the darkness below.

Eugene yawned again. "So, what kept you up?" Varian looked at him, confused. "You said you couldn't sleep." "Oh. It was nothing." Eugene shrugged, sensing the Alchemist's discomfort. "Alright. But you can talk to me if you need to, okay?" Varian smiled. "Thanks. But it was really nothing." Eugene glanced down at his hands. "Hey, you wanna hear about the time I got my foot stuck in a cart wheel?"

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About five minutes later, Varian was busting a lung laughing about Eugene's foot. He had dropped a very expensive ring underneath a horse cart, and in an attempt to get it back, had put his foot through the wheel spikes to use his foot to push it towards him. The plan had gone well, until he'd realized he couldn't get his foot back out of the hole. It had taken half an hour of careful sawing, and a bunch of pulling on Lance's part to get him out. 

Usually Eugene wouldn't tell stories at his own expense to easily, but he could sense Varian's somber mood. He smiled. _Mission cheer up Varian: Success._

A small "Ahem," noise interrupted Eugene's tale of woe. He turned to see Adira standing behind him. "As much as I hate to break this up, I need to check Varian's ribs. I want to make sure they didn't puncture a lung or something." Eugene blinked, surprised at the use of Varian's real name. Varian looked surprised too, but stood up to follow Adira anyway. Eugene followed them over to a pillow Adira had put on the ground, and watched as Adira checked Varian over. She sighed and shook her head. "There's no long lasting damage, but he's gonna take longer to heal now. Moving so much upset what little amount of healing he'd managed to do. He should be fine in about a month. Also, his head is fine, despite being flung into a wall at high speed and smacked with a sword." She turned back to Varian. "Just take it slow for the next few weeks, okay? And do try to refrain from making anything explode."

She stood up, said "Time to wake the others." then walked away. Eugene sighed, then smiled and clapped his hands together. "Well, we're supposed to be getting out of the tree today! I just hope we don't run into Hector..." Varian shook his head. "I doubt it. Adira only let Hector go because she knew she couldn't stop him from leaving when he got better, but he wasn't exactly in a good place to chase us down when he left. I doubt that's changed." Eugene smiled. "You're right. Well, are you glad we're getting out?" Varian shivered. "Definitely. Something about this place creeps me out." He paused. "Do you think Zhan Tiri's really gone?" Eugene blinked, surprised. "Well, yeah, of course. Demanitus banished Zhan Tiri to another _dimension._ I doubt that's easy to come back from. Why do you ask?" Varian shrugged. "No reason really."

Eugene felt someone tap his shoulder and turned to see Rapunzel smiling brightly at them. "Good morning guys! We're leaving now." Eugene bounced to his feet, then helped Varian up. "C'mon, let's get out of here, shall we?" 

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Half an hour later, the group stepped back into the sunlight outside of the tree.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always, i hope you all enjoyed this, and i'll see you in the next chapter!


	17. Birthdays and Shells

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eugene questions Varian about his birthday, and a strange house appears out of nowhere

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm alive....  
> sorry again everyone, its been so long

Throughout the entire time Varian had been walking through the tree, there was one persistent question that kept bothering him. What happened to the caravan?

Apparently, Adira had sent it flying down a nearby river in hopes that it would catch up to them in time, and it was now the gang's task to find all the smashed pieces and put them back together for the second or third time that week. Varian had lost track.

Varian sighed as he bent over to pick up a stray board. He added it to the swiftly growing pile of planks in his arms and walked back towards where the crew was putting the caravan back together. 

He was suddenly tackled from behind as a very excited Ruddiger jumped onto his shoulder. He stumbled forward, then flinched as pain sparked in his broken ribs. "Hi Ruddiger." Varian threw the wood down in the pile of planks, then reached up to scratch Ruddiger behind the ears. "I'll go get you an apple." He walked over to the pile of food they had sitting nearby, and took an apple from the top. He handed it to Ruddiger, who snatched it up, then jumped onto the ground to preserve his balance. Varian laughed and reached down to scratch Ruddiger's ears again.

He turned around, and found himself face to face with Eugene. "Hey kid! How's it going?" Varian smiled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Alright I guess. Why do you ask?" Eugene shrugged. "Oh, ya know, there's been a lot of crazy stuff happening these past few days. I'm just making sure you're okay." Varian smiled . "Thanks Eugene. I'm alright." Eugene clapped his hands together. "Great! Great, really great, glad you're doing good, Rapunzel wants to know when your birthday is." Varian blinked. "Say what?" Eugene laughed. "Don't tell her I told you, but every year for as long as I've known her, she throws a huge birthday party for each and every one of her friends. I think she wants to know when to get started on planning yours." Varian exchanged confused glances with Ruddiger, then looked back at Eugene. "I um... I don't actually know when my birthday is. I know it's in September, but I don't know what day." Eugene face brightened. "That gives us a whole month until Rapunzel throws the party!" then his face switched to panic. "Only a month! She's gonna work us all to death... anyway, you're sure you're alright Varian?" Varian nodded. "I'm alright. Better go prepare yourself for Rapunzel's party insanity. Oh, and, I'll see what I can do to stop ageing." Eugene laughed, then paused. "Wait, you're joking right? Don't use any dangerous chemicals on yourself! Oh shoot, Cass is calling, gottagobyekid!"

Varian watched Eugene scramble off with amusement. He shook his head, a smile on his face. He squatted down, and held his hand out to Ruddiger, calling him over. "Did you hear that Ruddiger? He called me one of her friends." Varian gave Ruddiger a small smile. "You know Ruddiger, this has been an amazing month so far."

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Rapunzel was stressing. 

How could someone not know their own birthday? Even back in the tower, Gothel had made a point of telling Rapunzel when her birthday was. But Varian didn't know? This just wouldn't work! 

She sighed. _Maybe I should just ask him when he wants a party. Or does he even want a party at all? Is he more_ like _Eugene or a Cass... I'll ask him later._

Rapunzel felt a tap on her shoulder, and turned to look at Catalina. "Hey Catalina!" Catalina smiled shyly at her, and said quietly, "Adira says all the pieces of the caravan have been found. All we have left to do is put them back together. Again." Rapunzel smiled brightly. "Oh, this is perfect! We should be back on the road in about two days then. Thanks Catalina!" The girl nodded, then ran off. 

Rapunzel rubbed her hand together. _Time to go rebuild a caravan! I just hope all our stuff's still there._

She ran over to where the shattered remains of caravan lay. She felt something cold and wet land on her forehead, but thought nothing of it. She was more concerned with the fact that Varian was standing in front of the broken boards, and totally not resting like he should be. She walked forward, and put her hand on his shoulder. "Hey Varian!" Varian started, then turned around. "Hey Princess. We have enough mostly-intact parts of the caravan that we should be done bye tomorrow. Assuming nothing happens, but then again, something always happens." Rapunzel laughed. "It definitely keeps things interesting!" Varian nodded and went back to staring at the wood.

Suddenly, a large drop of water landed in Rapunzel's eye. She let out a little yelp, and looked up. It was insanely cloudy, and it looked like a storm was about to break out. "Um, Varian? Do you think a mostly-intact portion of the caravan will be enough to keep us safe during a huge storm?" Varian glanced up. His face paled and he shook his head. "Nope. Definitely not." Rapunzel nodded grimly. "That's what I thought. I'm gonna go get Adira."

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It had been two hours of trudging through heavy rain, and the worst was yet to come. Lance wiped the rain out of his eyes, and continued to look for any sort of shelter throuh the rain. A large dark shadow stood out to him, and he called the group over. "What do you think that is?" He yelled, trying to make himself heard over the pouring rain. Rapunzel shrugged. "Might as well find out." She yelled back.

Fifteen minuets later, Lance stepped into the entryway of a huge shell shaped house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok so, i don't know which month season two is supposed to start in, so i kinda just made this whole timeline up. im thinking Rapunzel and the group left Corona around march, met Varian about two months later, then he was with them for all of june and july, so its around august 2 right now.  
> my timeline for this story is pretty messy right now, but i'll work on getting it more under control.  
> anyways, as always, i hope you enjoyed this, and i'll see you all in the next chapter


	18. Nightmares and Glowing

Even though Varian was grateful to not be out in the pouring rain, he couldn't help but feel suspicious. The house had something eerie about it that sent shivers down Varian's spine. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't shake the feeling.

Varian sighed and sat down on the entryway floor next to Lance. "Soooooooooo.... what do you think of this place?" Lance shrugged. "Seems nice enough to me. I mean, Matthews seems a little weird, but hey, we've seen weirder. " Varian grinned. "True, true. Just keep your eyes open, okay?" Lance smiled and nodded.

Varian sighed rested his head on his hand. The other hand automatically reached up and closed over his mother's necklace. He yawned, the events of the day finally catching up to him. Lance reached over and rested a hand on his shoulder. "Matthews, we're all pretty tired. Is it okay if we head to bed?" "Oh yes, of course, I will show you to your rooms."

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The room wasn't awfully exciting. It could certainly do with a little bit of bedazzling. _Maybe I can convince Matthews to let me give him a few decorating tips._ Eugene thought as he entered the room Matthews had assigned him. Lance and Varian had been put in the same room, while the girls and Pascal had been put in a separate room across the hall, and the horses were outside in the stables.

Lance sped past Eugene into the room. "I claim this bed!" he jumped onto one of the two beds in the room and immediately pulled a blanket over himself. Eugene facepalmed and turned to Varian. The alchemist shrugged. "I'll take the floor, just thow an extra blanket down." "You sure? I can take the floor if you want a bed." Varian shrugged again. "I don't mind the floor." Eugene nodded. "Alright then." He went over to the bed and threw and extra blanket onto the floor. He then promptly fell asleep. 

About two hours later, he was awoken by a strange noise. His eyes blinked open, and he shot up in bed, looking around in a panic. His gaze fell to Varian, who was curled up into a ball underneath his blanket. Eugene tossed his blankets aside and tip-toed over to Varian's sleeping form. He crouched down and gently lifted the blanket away from Varian's face.

Varian's expression was one of pure fear. His breath was way to fast, and he was sweating. Eugene's heart ached for the trembling boy. _He's probably having a nightmare_ _._ He put his hand on Varian's shoulder and shook him. 

Varian woke with a start, eyes wide and scared. He rocketed out of Eugene's grasp and pinned himself against the bed frame. His breath came in short gasps, and it was clear he was panicking. _What the heck was he dreaming about?_ Eugene felt a pang of pity in his chest for Varian. Whatever the kid had been dreaming about must have been worse then he thought. 

Eugene smiled gently and reached out to Varian. "Hey, hey, let's calm down okay? It's okay, you're safe." Varian blinked, confusion clouding his eyes. "Eugene?" Eugene nodded. "Yes, it's me." Varian let out a relieved breath, then smiled awkwardly. "Sorry I woke you up." Eugene shook his head. "Varian, you never need to be sorry for having a nightmare. At least, I assume that's what happened?" Varian rubbed the back of his neck and nodded. "Yeah." "Wanna talk about it?" Varian hesitated. "I- it was typical nightmare. Giant monster, scary woods, gruesome death." Eugene scooted closer to Varian as he talked. "I um, I think I was trying to get to something. I-I don't know what it was though." Eugene, concerned, asked "Do you want me to stay up with you for a little while? I'd be happy to." Varian shook his head. "No thanks Eugene. I'm alright." "Alright then. If you're sure." Varian smiled and nodded. "I'm sure. Thanks Eugene." Eugene smiled back. "No problem. Goodnight Varian."

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Lance wasn't sure what time it was, but he was sure it was extremely late. So why was someone shining a very bright light in the room? He rolled onto his side, and slowly opened his eyes. He blinked, rubbed his eyes, and blinked again.

Varian was in a sleeping position, except he was about a foot above the floor. His hair and freckles where glowing with an intense blue light. Lance shot up in bed with a small yelp. "Umm, Eugene? Eugene! Wake up!" Eugene rolled over in his bed and muttered, "Go back to sleep Lance, it's not morning yet." "Yes, I am aware." Lance hissed. "But I thought you might be concerned about the glowing child in the middle of the room." Eugene immediately sat straight up in bed. "The what now?" Eugene's face, which Lance could see perfectly in the bright light, was one of complete surprise.

"I'm just gonna go get Rapunzel." Lance let out a nervous chuckle. "Good idea."

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Rapunzel had to admit, it was an eerie sight. She'd seen glowing before, but not quite like this. And she'd certainly never seen anyone float.

_What triggered this? I don't think there's any black rocks in this house, and even if there were, Varian has to touch them to glow. So what's going on here?_

"Well Blondie, what do you think?" Rapunzel turned to Eugene. "I don't know. I can't think of anything that could trigger this." Eugene sighed. They stood there in silence for a few seconds before he asked, "Do you think we should wake him up?" "I don't see why not." Eugene nodded and walked to Varian's side. "Varian? Buddy? Wake up."

Varian's eyes snapped open, and he crashed to the floor. He sat up and rubbed his head. "Ow. Eugene? Rapunzel? What's going on?" Eugene glanced at Rapunzel. "We're not quite sure ourselves. You were glowing again. And floating." Varian frowned. "That doesn't make any sense. There's no black rocks around." Eugene nodded. "Exactly."

Rapunzel interrupted the conversation with a mighty yawn. "Um, could we continue this tomorrow? I don't think we're gonna get anywhere when we're all tired." Varian suggested. Eugene smiled. "Alright. You can go back to bed if you want Sunshine. I'll let you know if Varian starts glowing again" Rapunzel nodded. "I guess I am pretty tired." She gave Eugene a small kiss on the cheek and waved to Varian. _I hope he'll be okay._

She went back to her room and closed the door behind her. _I'll tell Cass about it tomorrow. Maybe she can come up with something._

Rapunzel fell into her bed, and slipped into a dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm thinking of splitting this fic into two parts, i guess we'll see?
> 
> as always, i hope you enjoyed my trash, and i'll see you all in the next chapter!


	19. Trapped

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woah, it's been a long time, even for me. im so sorry about that!

Varian eyes blinked open as he woke on the floor. Last nights events had been... stressful, to say the least. He sighed and sat up. 

He heard a loud snoring noise to his right, and turned to see Eugene knocked out on his bed. A small smile formed on Varian's face as he stood up and quietly tiptoed out of the room. He closed the door gently and turned around. "Hey Varian!" He jumped then grinned. "Hi Rapunzel. Morning." Rapunzel smiled. "Good morning to you to! I was just gonna wake you and Eugene up. There's breakfast in the kitchen, if you wanna head downstairs." Varian smiled and nodded. "I'll do that. Thanks Rapunzel. She nodded back and slammed Eugene's door open with a, "Rise and shine! Morning Eugene!" Eugene's surprised yelp was the last thing Varian heard before he was out of earshot. 

He laughed and trotted downstairs. He strode into the kitchen and slipped into the chair nearest the back of the room. Lance waved from his seat next to Cassandra and Adira. "Morning Varian." Varian smiled and waved back.

"Blondie, I love you, but it's to early to be getting up." "Eugene it's noon." "That early huh?" Rapunzel slumped into the kitchen dragging a very reluctant Eugene behind her. She sighed and pushed him into a chair. A loud noise filled the room as she clapped her hands together. "So! Matthews cooked all this for us! Oh that's just so sweet of him, isn't it?" Varian and Lance nodded while Eugene just grumbled under his breath. Rapunzel smiled brightly. "That's the morning spirit!"

Cassandra got up from her seat and poked Eugene on the shoulder. "Is it just me, or is the mighty prince more tired then usual this fine morning? Not that I'm complaining, it certainly helps to keep him quiet." Eugene groaned and slammed his head into the table. "Last night was a crazy night, okay Dragon Lady?" Rapunzel patted his head consolingly. "You didn't happen to see any black rocks on your way in last night, did you Cass?" Cassandra raised an eyebrow. "No. Why, should I be concerned?" Rapunzel shook her head rapidly. "No no no no. I don't think so anyway." Cassandra groaned facepalmed. "What happened this time?" Eugene lifted his head from the table. "Oh, you know, the usual. Glowing Varian, levitating Varian, all that jazz." he yawned and put his head on the table again. "Made for a long night, lemme tell you."

Varian looked down at his plate, guilt forming in the pit of his stomach. 

Rapunzel patted Eugene's head comfortingly. "So, the rain stopped this morning and I was thinking that we should probably get back to the caravan after breakfast." Cassandra snorted. "If it hasn't been smashed to pieces again. I wouldn't be surprised." Eugene lifted his head back off the table. "I swear, if it's broken again I'm not bothering to fix it this time. At this point, it would be easier to go on foot." Varian silently agreed. Rapunzel pulled out a chair next to Eugene and shoved a piece of bacon into her mouth. "I just hope it doesn't come to that."

They passed the next few minuets in silence. Varian continued to play with his food while the rest of them finished their food. A sudden weight on Varian's shoulders made him jump, then laugh quietly as Ruddiger rubbed his cheek against Varian's. He picked up a slice of bacon and fed it to the raccoon, then took a bite of a different piece. 

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About ten minuets passed before the group was done with breakfast. When Adira finally stood up and announced that they were leaving, Varian was long past ready to get out of the house. Last night's events had deeply increased his suspicion that there was something incredibly wrong with this place. 

He pushed himself out of his chair and practically ran to the door.

At least, what was the door.

Varian froze when he saw the blank space of wall that was supposed to be a door. He heard Eugene gasp beside him. "I-it's gone?"

_That, that shouldn't be possible! What happened? It was right here! Why isn't it here?_

While Varian silently panicked, Lance stepped up to the wall. "Don't worry everyone! I got this!" He then proceeded to gently tap every part of the wall that he could reach."There's always a trick to these things." a few seconds passed before he drew back from the wall and took a deep breath. "We're doomed." Rapunzel laughed nervously. "I wouldn't say _doomed._ More like, momentarily delayed!" Eugene shook his head. "No, I'm pretty sure doomed is the right word."

Rapunzel tapped her chin. "Maybe we can find another way out?" Varian nodded, still slightly panicked and now very jumpy. "Sounds like a good idea to me." He turned to the stairs to follow the group up. 

A flash of blue suddenly dashed past in the corner of his eye. Varian whipped around, eyes wide. There was nothing there. He shrugged and turned back to the staircase. 

It was funny, the flash of blue had looked just like a little girl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so im definitely splitting this story into two parts. i honestly didn't expect for this to have so many chapters, but i now know it's going to have many more. i am going to try to start writing longer chapters though.
> 
> so anyway, as always, i hope you enjoyed my trash, and i'll see you in the next chapter!


	20. The Girl in Blue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian's still feels like there's something incredibly wrong with the house, but it's got to be his imagination.
> 
> Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im so sorry it's been so long.

Cassandra trudged up the stairs, followed by a short line of her fellow travelers. _Stupid house. I should've known we wouldn't be able to go a day without something insane happening._ She pinched the bridge of her nose and took a right at the top of the stairs. _Not to mention whatever's going on with Varian and the glowing thing._ She paused mid-step as realization hit her. _He told me he has nightmares. That's gotta have something to do with it._ She glanced behind her, to where Varian was tagging along at the back of the group. She frowned. _I'll have to ask him later._ She sighed and continued down the corridor. 

Rapunzel's cheery voice echoed across the corridor. "Okay gang, start opening doors. One of them has to lead out of the house." Cassandra scoffed and turned around to face the group. "With our luck, I doubt that." Rapunzel forced a laugh. "I'm sure we'll get out soon Cass. Let's split up, shall we?" Cassandra nodded. "Sure, sounds good to me." She reached for a nearby door and pushed it open. She was immediately swept off her feet by a strong gust of wind. She slammed against the far wall, bumping into the edge of a piece of furniture in the process. 

She saw Rapunzel swing her hair out of the corner of her eye, and then the wind was gone. Cassandra groaned and stood up. "Okay, so maybe opening random doors isn't the best plan after all." Rapunzel laughed nervously. "Yeah I guess so. What now then?" Cassandra shrugged. "No clue." they stood in silence for a few minuets. Rapunzel sighed. "I guess we should go back to the kitchen, we can figure out things from there." Cassandra nodded. "Sounds good." _This'll give me a chance to talk to Varian_ _too_.

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Varian leaned on the kitchen wall, Ruddiger perched on his shoulder. He rested his head against the wall and closed his eyes. With his left hand, he reached up and scratched behind Ruddiger's ears, and with his right he held his mother's necklace. 

_I really hate this place._ He opened his eyes glanced around at the people surrounding him. Cassandra and Rapunzel were talking quietly in a corner, while Eugene and Lance were playing some kind of game with Angry and Catalina. Adira stood watching nearby. Varian sighed and began to tap his foot on the floor. _So far, there's been nothing too dangerous. But I can feel something terrible. It's surrounding this entire place. Like an ancient being, waiting for it's next victim._

Varian shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut again. _Come on Varian, you're being stupid. You're just imagining things. Everything looks fine. Nothing bad has happened so far, and nothing will. Besides, we'll be out soon._

A sudden presence next to him interrupted his thoughts. He opened his eyes to see Cassandra leaning against the wall to his right. She met his gaze and smiled in greeting. "Hi." Varian returned the smile and returned his hand to the back of Ruddiger's ears. Cassandra let out a sigh. "Hey, so I wanted to ask you a few things." Varian's gaze flicked back over to Cassandra. "At the Great Tree, you told me you had nightmares. Any chance you had one last night?" Varian glanced at the ground, then back to Cassandra. Then he nodded. "I have one most nights." "Do you remember what it was about?" Varian shuddered. "Very clearly." Cassandra turned to face him. "Was it about the black rocks?" Varian raised an eyebrow and shook his head. "No, why?" Cassandra's shoulders slumped. "Because Rapunzel knew to follow the black rocks because of a series of dreams. It caused her hair to do a lot of weird things, like dangle her outside her window." She chuckled, then sombered again. "I was hoping that maybe your dreams could have a connection to last night. But I guess not." Varian looked back down at the ground. 

Neither one of them talked for a few minuets. Then Varian asked, "Hey Cass?" "Yeah?" "Don't you feel like there's something wrong here?" Cassandra raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean wrong?" Varian bit his lip nervously. "Like- like there's something really really bad nearby." Cassandra frowned. "Well, I'd be lying if I said this place doesn't make me uneasy. But no, I wouldn't say I feel like that. Why, do you?" Varian shrugged. "Probably just my imagination." Cassandra nodded. "I'd better go talk to Rapunzel. We still haven't figured out how we're gonna get out of here." With that she left him.

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The girl watched the group. They couldn't see her of course, but she had let her gem catch a glimpse of her earlier. He'd brushed her off, but that was fine, she'd been expecting that. 

The boy was no danger to her yet, but she needed him on her side before he could become one. It shouldn't be a problem.

After all, he did belong with her.

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Lance could tell Angry and Catalina were growing impatient. And he couldn't really blame them. They'd been standing in the kitchen for a good half hour, and no one could think of any kind of plan. Lance was pretty sure that even Rapunzel was getting worried. She'd been doing her best to the everyone's spirits up, but even Rapunzel could only do so much, and Lance was running out of games to play. 

Beside him, Eugene stood up from his position on the floor. "I'm gonna go check with Blondie, see if there's a beginning of a plan yet." Lance looked up and nodded. "Good idea. Hey, Catalina, Angry, wanna play tag?" Both girls jumped up. Angry shouted "Yeah!" and they both took off across the room.

Before Lance could start after them, a loud "Ahem" rang out from the doorway. Lance turned around to see Matthews standing just inside the room with a friendly smile on his face. Lance heard Rapunzel let out a sigh of relief as she rushed over to him. "Matthews! This is gonna sound weird, I mean like, really really weird, but the door disappeared and we can't get out." Matthews laughed and replied, "Oh don't worry, it does that from time to time. It will be back soon. In the meantime, you are welcome to stay as long as you desire." "Oh thank you so much!"

Lance gave his own sigh of relief and went to chase after the girls. On his way past Matthews he spotted Varian slipping outside. _He probably wants to get away from the craziness for a minuet. I don't blame him._

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Varian had seen it again, the flash of blue. It had run past the door just as Varian had glanced over. He knew it was just his skitterish mind, but he still went to check it out.

As he stepped out in the hall, he gasped and jumped back.

Standing in the middle of the hallway was a little girl, all in blue, with a creepy grin on her face. She stood there for a few minuets, staring at him. And then she was gone.

Varian stood there, shaken for a few minuets. _Just my imagination, just my imagination, it had to have been._

But even as he repeated these words in his head, a soft voice whispered into his ear. 

_"Welcome home, Gem."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i tried to make this chapter a little longer then the other ones, but it's still kinda short sorry
> 
> i hope you enjoyed my trash, and i'll see you in the next chapter!


	21. Phase Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zhan-Tiri's evil and magic houses are annoying.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woah, i haven't uploaded for such a long time, i'm really sorry everyone.  
> this chapter isn't very well written, sorry about that.

Varian could feel his body shaking, shock overwhelming his senses. No matter how much he told himself otherwise, what he had seen was unmistakably real.

He sat just outside the kitchen, his back against the wall. The cheerful voices of the other's could be heard easily from out into the hallway, ringing into his ears. A particularly loud shout of joy came rang out into the hallway, causing Varian to wince and put his hands over his ears. _Am I seeing things? Or was **She** real? If so, what did she mean, "Welcome home"? And why did she call me Gem? _He squeezed his eyes shut and buried his face in his knees. _I need to tell the others._ He took his hands from his ears and stood up.

He walked to the kitchen door and peaked inside. Lance was apparently playing tag with Catalina and Angry, Rapunzel and Adira where talking with Eugene, Matthews was standing at the back of the room, and Cassandra was standing in the corner nearest Varian. He took a deep breath and walked in. "Cass? Can I talk to you for a minute?" 

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Cassandra glanced down at Varian's pale face. "Woah, you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost!" Varian gave a nervous laugh. "I don't know, maybe I have." Cassandra raised an eyebrow. "Explain?" Varian bit his lip. "I-I saw a little girl, she was out in the hallway. She was entirely blue, and kind of see through." Cassandra stared at him. "Um, are you feeling alright?" Varian looked down at the ground. "I know it sounds crazy, but I swear I saw her Cassandra." Cassandra sighed. "Look, Varian, we've all been fairly stressed out, and you really didn't get a very good night's rest." Varian shook his head, clearly distressed. "No! That's not it! Cassandra, I heard her, she talked to me!" Cassandra sighed again and rubbed her eyes with her hands. "Fine. If you're really that worried about it, we should go talk to Rapunzel." A clear look of relief washed over Varian's face. "Thanks Cass." Cassandra nodded. "Sure." She glanced around the room until she spotted Rapunzel, then walked across the room in her direction.

 _Poor kid, he' really worried._ She glanced over at Varian. _He's been really jumpy ever since the door disappeared. I hope he's okay. I mean, okay as he can be, this is a pretty insane situation._

She was brought back to reality when they reached Rapunzel and Adira. "Oh, so _that's_ why the swords unbreakable! It's so cool that you have a sword of black rocks!" Cassandra smiled and joined the conversation. "Hey Raps. Mind if we talk for a minute?" Rapunzel turned to them, a smile on her face. "Of course! What is it?" Cassandra watched Rapunzel's brow furrow as she listened to Varian's story. "I don't know Varian, maybe she was a product of to little sleep." Varian sighed. "Maybe." "I doubt it." Cassandra glanced at Adira. "Why do you say that?" Adira crossed her arms. "Varian is the Moondrop. If he says he saw something, he saw something. Forgive me, but you should not brush him off so easily." Cassandra pursed her lips. "As much as I'd normally agree with you, a ghost girl? Come on, that seems beyond the realm of possibility, even for us." Adira shrugged. "It is possible that she wasn't a ghost. Remember, nothing is ever as it seems." She sighed and uncrossed her arms. "All I'm saying is that we should keep a look out." "Fine."

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She was growing concerned. She hadn't expected her gem to tell the Sundrop about her so soon, but then again, it wasn't exactly a surprise. 

She stood right behind the boy they called Varian, the one she had saved so long ago. She watched his growing discomfort as his companions discussed his, "ghost sighting". She laughed bitterly as she thought about it. Is that all she was now? A mere ghost story? Oh well, it wouldn't be for long. Once she had her gem on her side, she would be unstoppable. It would take time, certainly, but she'd already waited so long, she could endure a few more weeks. 

She turned her gaze to the girl with the short brown hair, the one that looked so familiar. 

It was time for the next phase of her plan to begin.

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It had been about two hours since Matthews had reassured them about the door, but there was still no sign of it. Cassandra could tell that Varian was growing more nervous by the second, and she couldn't exactly blame him. Matthews had noticed their impatience and had suggested that they explore the east side of the house, the one with the least dangerous doors. The group had been reluctant to take him up on his offer at first, but as the minuets passed, and still no door to be seen, they finally decided to try it.

So here they were, trudging through corridor after corridor, looking for some form of safe entertainment, though Cassandra highly doubted that was possible. 

Cassandra let out a loud groan as they turned into yet another boring hall. "Same exact hallway. Why are we even bothering?" Rapunzel turned to face her. "Don't say that Cassandra! I'm sure we'll find something fun to do very soon!" Cassandra groaned again. "Okay, I'm opening this door, stand back." The group pressed themselves against the far wall as Cassandra turned the knob of the nearest door. She let out a squawk of surprise as she was immediately grabbed and sucked through the door by an invisible force.

It was cold, and dark. Cassandra struggled against whatever was pulling her along, though she already knew it was pointless. Panic set in as she flailed about, trying to find something, _anything_ to grab onto. "Let me go!" she didn't know why she was shouting. Whatever this thing was, it clearly wasn't human, most likely not even alive. But she shouted anyway, despite the fact that it was useless. _I have to get back to the group, we can't be separated, not when the door could return any minuet._ She paused for a split second as a new thought entered her head. _What if the door doesn't return? What if Varian's right, and this place is evil? But how could a house be evil? I guess I've seen weirder things...._ She shook her head vigorously, clearing her thoughts. _I'll worry about that later. For now I need to focus on getting away from this thing._

A good five minuets passed as she continued to struggle, desperate to get away. She stopped moving for a second to look ahead, towards wherever this thing was taking her. A small dot of something that was probably light was growing bigger in the distance. It probably wouldn't be long until she reached it. She sighed, and stopped struggling for good. _I need to save my energy. Who knows what's on the other side of this tunnel, I might need to fight. I can't waste my energy here._ She sighed settled in for a few more minuets. _I really hope this doesn't take long..._

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"CASSANDRA!" Rapunzel dashed forward, rushing to catch her swiftly disappearing friend. Cassandra's brown hair quickly vanished from sight, whatever force that had taken her slamming the door shut behind her. "Cassandra! Cass!" Rapunzel grabbed the door knob, twisting it as fast as she could. She threw the door open, to be met with... a solid brick wall. 

"W-what?" Rapunzel took a step back, shocked. "No, no, no, no, no, this can't be happening." She put a hand on the brick wall, frantically searching for a secret trick, something, anything, to get to her best friend. "No, no, no, Eugene please tell me this isn't happening, we can't be separated, not now!She's facing whatever took her all on her own, we have to find a way to get back to her! Not to mention the door could be back any minuet, we can't leave without her! " She weight on her shoulder as Eugene put his hand there. "It's okay Blondie. Cassandra's tough, she can face whatever took her. Besides, with luck she might not have to. And the door with reappear again." He removed his hand and gave her a swift hug. "We'll find her, I promise."

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The second part of her plan was nearly in place. The woman they called Cassandra was close, as soon as she had her on her side, the fight was practically already won. If she couldn't get her Gem, she was certain that Cassandra could. She was mostly a backup, though Zhan-Tiri could easily find other ways to use her. And if worst comes to worst there where... other ways to catch her Gem. However, she would rather not resort to that. It would be a shame to ruin such an amazing asset. 

Ah. Here was Cassandra now.

The invisible creature she'd called upon dumped the woman out onto the grass, causing her to land on her hand and her knees. She sprung up quickly though, glancing around suspiciously. Her eyes quickly lighted on Zhan-Tiri, and they widened. "Who are you?" Zhan-Tiri smiled. "A friend...

Or at least, I'd like to be."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always, i hope you enjoyed my trash, and i'll see you in the next chapter!


	22. Finally out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The truth is revealed, and an unexpected piece of the puzzle joins the party.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *cue my monthly apology* so i know it's been over a month, and i just wanna say im so so sorry. this chapter was really fighting me for some reason, and i couldn't get the motivation to just get off my lazy butt and write it. im so so sorry.

Cassandra stared at the little girl in front of her, eyes wide. "What do you want?" The girl smiled, sharp teeth revealing themselves. "My dear Cassandra, I want to help you! I wish to show you how you, and others, have been terribly wronged, by one you call a friend. Even your best friend." Cassandra inhaled sharply, drawing her sword. "Rapunzel would never hurt me! Even if she did, she would never do it on purpose." The girls smile fell. "Oh but are you sure Cassandra? Are you absolutely certain?" She smiled again, gentle and sympathetic. "Poor dear, let me show you." 

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Varian followed Rapunzel as she led the group through the empty hallways of the House of Yesterday's Tomorrow. The princess was clearly worried out of her mind, but trying desperately not to show it. 

_Cassandra's gonna be fine, she's gonna be fine, she's gonna be fine, she's gonna be fine, she's-_ "Varian? You okay kid?" Varian, startled, swiftly nodded and smiled. "I'm fine, thanks Eugene." Eugene smiled gently and ruffled Varian's hair. "We're all worried, but she's gonna be just fine, okay? She's stronger than that." Varian's shoulder's slumped and he nodded. "I know. I know! I just... I can't help but worry about her." Eugene frowned and nodded. "I know what you mean. But I promise, she's gonna be okay. That woman can survive anything." Varian sighed and gave Eugene a smile smile. "You're right. She'll be okay." Eugene gave him one last hair ruffle before joining Rapunzel at the front of the group. 

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An agonizing half hour passed while the search for Cassandra continued. Varian was growing even more restless and jumpy, if that was even possible. _We need to find Cassandra and get out of here. The danger is getting closer, and-_ Varian paused mid-thought. _What danger?_

"Eugene, come here!" Varian was risen from his thoughts by Rapunzel's excited voice. "What is it Blondie?" "Eugene, It's a piece of the scroll! I can't believe this, what is Matthews doing with it?" 

"Do not touch the scroll!" Varian jumped at Matthews sudden shout from behind him, and turned to face the man. 

He was green.

"I will keep the Sundrop and the Moonstone in this house!" Matthews let out an angry screech and dived toward Rapunzel. Varian ducked behind a statue, shifting through his bag in a panic. 

_Come on, come on, where is it.... here!_

Varian grabbed a purple ball from his back and ducked out from behind the statue, throwing it with all this might. It hit Matthews square in the back, a purple cloud encasing him, then hardening to form a rock hard substance. 

Varian crossed his arms and glared at Rapunzel. "I _told_ you this place is cursed." Rapunzel gave a shaky laugh and stuffed the piece of the scroll into her bag. "Thanks Varian. But, um, is Matthews stuck like that, or..." Varian shook his head. "It'll dissolve in about five hours. So we don't have much time. Let's get the heck out of here, shall we?"

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Cassandra was _furious._ Her fists clenched and un-clenched, angry tears streaming down her cheeks. Her hands raised to her face as she slipped down unto her knees in the dry grass. _How could she do this? She knew... **She knew!**_ _And what did she do about it? **Nothing**. Absolutely nothing. And why should she? She was perched up on her high horse, nothing mattered to her. She helped ruin a life, she was willing to let terrible things pass by unnoticed, simply because it served her own needs. _

Cassandra pushed herself to her feet, aggressively wiping her tears away. "I'm so sorry Cassandra. But, I suppose, the Princess has always had her flaws. Perhaps this isn't truly a surprise." Cassandra laughed darkly at the blueberry's comment. "This- this is more then a flaw, Blueberry." Cassandra's brow furrowed in anger, her hand unconsciously drifting to her sword. "I won't- no, I _can't_ forgive her for this." She turned to the girl, anger burning in her eyes. The girl's grin widened, unseen by Cassandra. "I won't let her get away with this. I _won't_."

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After two long hours Cassandra had found them, and Rapunzel couldn't be more relieved. She had rushed to give Cassandra a tight hug, and hadn't noticed her strange reaction.

She should have. 

They found the door, and practically ran out, not even noticing the strange looks Cassandra was giving Rapunzel.

They should have. 

They showed Cassandra the next piece of the scroll before giving it to Varian to translate, missing the more-intense than normal attention she was giving it.

They should have noticed.

They should have seen.

They should have done something.

But now it's too late.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dun dun dunnnnnnnn
> 
> im not hugely proud of most of this chapter, but meh, it could be worse, it was fairly rushed. i might go back and edit it a little later, but we'll see.  
> also, sorry for any mistakes guys, guess who broke their brand new squishy ball and spilled slime all over their keyboard? that's right folks, me! i am officially an idiot(if i wasn't already, i sure am now)!  
> my keyboards fine, its just a lot harder to type now. The same can't be said for the squishy ball though XD
> 
> also, im sorry for the lack of a big fight between Matthews and the group, i saw the opportunity for alchemy and i took it.
> 
> as always, i hope you enjoyed my trash, and i'll see you in the next chapter!


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